New Delhi: Direct flights between India and China have resumed after more than four years, marking a thaw in relations between the two neighbours.

“Direct flights between China and India are now a reality,” Yu Jing, spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in India posted on X on Sunday. ADVERTISEMENT

The first flight from Kolkata to Guangzhou took off during the day and operations in the Shanghai-New Delhi route will begin on November 9, with three flights every week.

Direct flights were first suspended between the two countries during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Galwan clash of 2020 further accentuated the situation and flight operations remained cancelled though trade continued between the two countries.

Bilateral trade between the two nations stood at USD 127.71 billion in 2024-25 but t

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