India, April 19 -- India's external affairs minister S Jaishankar has talked about "an unsettled world... one with a lot of turbulence and volatility". The Communist Party of China general secretary and Chinese President Xi Jinping has similarly stated that the world was undergoing "great changes unseen in a century". In a world with such uncertainties then what are the prospects for India-China relations?

It would appear that at least part of the recent thaw in the India-China relationship has been driven by common concerns with the second Donald Trump administration in the US. These might not be enough, however, to keep the two countries together for long.

Trump's maximalist moves must eventually meet friction, and China is much bette...