India-China relations are entering a new phase of cautious re-engagement after five years of deep tension following the 2020 Galwan clash. Leaders have resumed meetings, direct flights have restarted, and diplomatic channels are active again. However, beneath these gestures lie enduring structural fault lines: a widening power asymmetry, unresolved border disputes, shifting public opinion in India, and Beijing’s tendency to view New Delhi through the prism of US–China rivalry.

Dan Banik speaks with Manoj Kewalramani, Chairperson of the Indo-Pacific Studies Programme and a China Studies Fellow at the Takshashila Institution and author of Smokeless War: China’s Quest for Geopolitical Dominance. Together, they examine whether the current thaw represents meaningful stabilization or merely a fragile “cold peace.” The conversation explores how economic interdependence coexists with strategic mistrust, why India is pursuing de-risking rather than decoupling from China, and how domestic politics and public narratives shape policy choices in both countries.

From a development perspective, the episode also asks whether policy lessons can travel across fundamentally different political systems. Can India draw operational insights from China’s infrastructure and governance successes without compromising democratic institutions? And is Beijing willing to accommodate India’s aspirations as an independent global power?

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Host:

Dan Banik 

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X: @danbanik @GlobalDevPod

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