India–China Talks Yield Breakthrough on Fertilizer, Rare Earth, and TBM Supplies

 New Delhi: India and China recorded a significant step forward in bilateral relations on Monday, as visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi assured External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar that Beijing would resume critical supplies of fertilizers, rare earth minerals, and tunnel boring machines (TBMs). The announcement comes amid efforts by both nations to restore normalcy in ties strained in recent years.

According to sources, EAM Jaishankar raised the issue of urea, NPK, DAP fertilizers, rare earth elements, and TBMs during his visit to Beijing last month. While these matters were addressed in his meeting with Wang Yi, boundary talks and border-related issues were left for National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to discuss separately in the Special Representative-level dialogue scheduled today. Minister Wang is also expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi later this evening.

Jaishankar reiterated India’s unchanged stance on Taiwan, emphasizing that New Delhi, like much of the international community, maintains its engagement with Taipei solely on economic and cultural grounds.

Although the talks were described as cordial, U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies loomed large over the meeting. Both sides acknowledged the need to draw closer in the face of Washington’s increasingly unpredictable decisions, which they believe could impact both New Delhi and Beijing.

China’s decision to lift restrictions on exports marks a major development, as Indian imports of fertilizers, rare earth minerals, and TBMs from Beijing had been stalled for nearly a year. China currently supplies nearly 30 percent of India’s fertilizer requirements, along with rare earths essential for the automotive sector and TBMs critical for road and urban infrastructure projects.

While border discussions did not feature in the Jaishankar–Wang talks, NSA Doval is expected to engage substantively on the issue of de-escalation along the 3,488 km Line of Actual Control (LAC). Despite progress in resolving friction points and patrolling disputes in Ladakh, large troop deployments remain on both sides of the border, making disengagement and a return of forces to their barracks a priority for upcoming negotiations.