Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi begins key China visit

Media captionHow China and India measure up

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Indian PM Narendra Modi is in China on a three-day visit intended to boost economic co-operation but in danger of being overshadowed by mutual mistrust.

Ties between the two countries are strained because of a long-running border dispute.

Arriving in the ancient city of Xian, Mr Modi will travel to Beijing and Shanghai as he seeks to secure foreign investment in India's infrastructure.

Mr Modi said that he hoped his visit would increase the prosperity of Asia.

"I am confident my visit will lay the foundation for further enhancing economic co-operation with China in a wide range of sectors," he tweeted last week.

China is India's biggest trading partner with commerce between the two countries totalling $71bn (£45bn/€62bn) in 2014.

But Indian figures show that its trade deficit with China has spiralled from just $1bn in 2001-02 to more than $38bn (£24bn/€33bn) in 2014.

Ties between China and India have long been strained over a border dispute stemming from a short but bitterly-fought war between the two countries in 1962.

Correspondents say that Mr Modi has pursued a more strident foreign policy since coming to power a year ago, strengthening ties with the US and abandoning his country's long-standing foreign policy of non-alignment.

Beijing, in turn, has strengthened ties with India's arch-rival Pakistan, pledging to invest millions of dollars in infrastructure projects there.