The president of the United States surprised his Indian counterpart by touting U.S. friendship with India’s arch rival, Pakistan. Such gaffes aside, India is looking to America for some advantages, while balancing relations with China.

India and China’s nuclear deterrence allows both countries to undertake bilateral problem solving without fear of conflict escalation, while the United States and China can simultaneously work to reduce overall global nuclear risks.

China and India both recognize the need to address the issues in their respective countries and it is of mutual interest to incrementally get their relationship back on track.

China is stuck between a rock and a hard place – as the trilateral dispute over Kashmir continues, China may have difficulty managing the strong economic partnership it has with Pakistan as it tries to build a new alliance with India.

Virtually every major breakthrough in relations between China and India had its roots in direct interaction by the top leaders. What matters most is that they have now institutionalized the dialogue.

An Indo-Pakistan conflict was prevented from turning into full blown war by China and other countries. However, the threat for future conflict between both countries lingers on.

Although the leaders of the SCO member-states emphasised that the Qingdao summit will be a new departure point for the organisation and agreed in principle that there is a need for a roadmap of actions, it still remains unclear what the SCO can really offer.

The two sides should demonstrate political resolve and find a fair and reasonable solution acceptable to both on the basis of strategic mutual trust, mutual understanding, and mutual accommodation.

The “informal summit” between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the end of April will likely be extremely consequential. The “Chindian reset” could well be a new beginning that allows the most dynamic region in the world to claim a “pacific” new Asian Century.

The convergence of strategic threats to India, and the legacy of failed American policy in the region, have seen the resurgence of the once defunct Quadrilateral Security grouping. In doubling its efforts to serve as a regional counterweight to Chinese influence to ensure the sustained freedom of the seas and to stymie any Chinese efforts to gain control over crucial sea lanes to potentially block free trade, India would signal its leadership role.