Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

On his six-day tour of South Asia, Chinese President Xi Jinping went out of his way to score as many achievements as possible, especially in India. This latest face-to-face meeting has silhouetted a new interaction model between the two major powers in Asia.

What Beijing and New Delhi have achieved during Xi's visit is beyond expectations. Not only has a whole package of 12 agreements has been signed, both nations have also made breakthroughs in some crucial fields.

For instance, they have expressed their intention to cooperate on building a high-speed railway in India, which means political endorsement that offers Chinese high-speed rail technology a green card into Indian market.

Besides, New Delhi also reassured Beijing that it won't allow anti-China political activities to be conducted in India, a reiteration of its stance on Tibet-related issues.

In terms of the long-standing territorial conflict, India also showed restraint, although tensions had been raised along the disputed border before Xi's visit.

China has scored significantly in India, not only because Chinese investment and competitive advantages are able to enter the world's second largest market more freely, but more importantly because China's strategic goal of holding its southwest steady has made initial progress, especially given the fact that China faces territorial disputes in the south and east.

In addition, in establishing the maritime Silk Road, India could be a friend or a foe. Xi's visit has set the themes of cooperation instead of competition with India in this project.

While receiving Xi, India's newly elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi has revealed the basic attitude of his government's China policy. Apparently, as a clear-minded and practical political leader, Modi is aware that India's focus must be put on domestic development, and India won't make it without China's help.

Modi is fully aware of India's position in the international community. As a regional power whose large potential has yet to be fully explored, India is a major force that stakeholders with global strategies are trying to rope in.

India knows that it has international influence, but it lacks the capability to exert it. China's situation is the other way around. Therefore, it becomes feasible that China and India can establish a complementary mechanism.

Modi's actions since he took office have shown that his government has put the priority on how to improve its capability to tap into India's potential and improve its strength in a comprehensive manner.

India's strategy is not in line with what the West, especially the US, keeps expecting. Washington's plan is to make India into a tool to hold up China's rise, and in exchange, it will give India political and military support on the international arena.

Apparently, the US missed what India, especially the new Indian government, desires the most, and Washington cannot offer the same economic benefits as China can do.

It can be anticipated that Modi's US visit in late September won't be as fruitful as Xi's visit to India. Washington requires payback for every investment, and New Delhi has not offered anything back after reaping a lot of benefits from the US. Grievances might loom over Modi's visit.

But from a macro perspective, although the trajectory is positive, China and India will face challenges in building a high-level cooperation framework. Both nations are seeking the status of a global power, and the most likely relationship between China and India will be strategically competitive and tactically cooperative.

India's top leadership must have realized that no side-picking is the best option for India's development so that it could benefit from both China and the US.

China doesn't have to worry about India seeking a coalition with the US and Japan to counter China, because it is against India's national interests and its national nonalignment policy.

India needs to cooperate with China in individual cases. In the future, China and India will interact with each other in a model where competition and cooperation coexist.

The article was compiled by Global Times reporter Liu Zhun based on an interview with Zhou Fangyin, a professor at the Guangdong Research Institute for International Strategies. liuzhun@globaltimes.com.cn