Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly sent a confidential letter to Indian President Droupadi Murmu in March, seeking to revive ties between New Delhi and Beijing as both nations faced trade pressure from US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, Bloomberg reported.

According to an Indian official familiar with the matter, the letter was passed on to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Xi used the message to “test the waters on improving ties” and raised concerns about any possible deal between India and the United States that could “harm China’s interests.” He even named a provincial official who would lead Beijing’s engagement efforts, the report said.

Questions Over Xi’s Letter

Reports in both Indian and Chinese media had mentioned Xi’s communication to Murmu in March, but it remains unclear whether they referred to the same letter described by Bloomberg.

At the time, Trump had imposed 50 percent tariffs on Indian goods and waged a larger trade war with China, slapping tariffs of up to 145 percent. While the US and China have since entered an uneasy trade truce, Beijing appeared to hold an advantage as Trump softened his stance amid China’s dominance in rare earth supplies.

Growing Signs of India-China Engagement

Since March, both India and China have introduced measures to signal improving ties. Beijing reopened the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra for Indian pilgrims, New Delhi resumed visas for Chinese tourists, and direct flights between the two countries restarted.

According to Bloomberg, India only responded “seriously” to Xi’s outreach in June, coinciding with a rough patch in India-US trade negotiations.

The Context of Strained India-US Ties

This shift came as India’s relations with Washington soured. Trump had falsely claimed credit for resolving the India-Pakistan conflict of May and undermined India’s role in Operation Sindoor, damaging trust between the two countries.

Longstanding Diplomatic Efforts Between India and China

However, analysts point out that New Delhi and Beijing’s diplomatic engagement predates Trump’s tariffs. Last year, the two sides reached an agreement to ease tensions in Ladakh, which created space for the first direct meeting between Modi and Xi after years of strained ties.