‘No willingness to acknowledge…’: Kanwal Sibal calls out Beijing for lauding restoration of India-China flights
Direct flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou resumed this week, marking the reopening of a key route that was suspended for five years, following a prolonged suspension caused by the pandemic and heightened diplomatic tensions.
- Oct 28, 2025,
- Updated Oct 28, 2025 12:47 PM IST
China has shown no willingness to acknowledge their long history of hostility towards India, said former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal. This comes as an editorial in Chinese media said that the restoration of flights between India and China is the first step towards getting the relationship between the nations back on track.
“As usual, no willingness to acknowledge the long history of their hostile acts against India. China needs to properly introspect about their responsibility in striking periodic blows on ties with India,” said Sibal, about Beijing, an ally of Pakistan.
The editorial in Global Times stated that there are many areas of exchange that need to be revived as various aspects of India-China relations, including visas, academic exchange, cultural engagement and border trade was severely affected in the past five years. China is "unilaterally opening up" to India, while India has only opened a very small "seam of the door" to China, the editorial claimed. Bilateral engagement has significant room for growth, it said.
Direct flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou resumed this week, marking the reopening of a key route that was suspended for five years, following a prolonged suspension caused by the pandemic and heightened diplomatic tensions. An IndiGo A320 Neo aircraft departed Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport at 10 pm on Sunday with 176 passengers, for the first time since early 2020.
The service is expected to facilitate travel for business professionals, students, and tourists, who previously relied on this corridor as a vital link between eastern India and southern China. The route’s reopening comes amid what officials described as "recent diplomatic initiatives" aimed at normalising engagement between the two countries.
Previously, flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou served as an important economic and cultural bridge, especially benefiting business travellers and students from both countries.
China has shown no willingness to acknowledge their long history of hostility towards India, said former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal. This comes as an editorial in Chinese media said that the restoration of flights between India and China is the first step towards getting the relationship between the nations back on track.
“As usual, no willingness to acknowledge the long history of their hostile acts against India. China needs to properly introspect about their responsibility in striking periodic blows on ties with India,” said Sibal, about Beijing, an ally of Pakistan.
The editorial in Global Times stated that there are many areas of exchange that need to be revived as various aspects of India-China relations, including visas, academic exchange, cultural engagement and border trade was severely affected in the past five years. China is "unilaterally opening up" to India, while India has only opened a very small "seam of the door" to China, the editorial claimed. Bilateral engagement has significant room for growth, it said.
Direct flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou resumed this week, marking the reopening of a key route that was suspended for five years, following a prolonged suspension caused by the pandemic and heightened diplomatic tensions. An IndiGo A320 Neo aircraft departed Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport at 10 pm on Sunday with 176 passengers, for the first time since early 2020.
The service is expected to facilitate travel for business professionals, students, and tourists, who previously relied on this corridor as a vital link between eastern India and southern China. The route’s reopening comes amid what officials described as "recent diplomatic initiatives" aimed at normalising engagement between the two countries.
Previously, flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou served as an important economic and cultural bridge, especially benefiting business travellers and students from both countries.