The annual defence report even says the former foes' forces are mending fences
For the first time since 1998, the Indian Defence Ministry's annual report to Parliament has not identified China as the biggest threat to national security.
India also revealed that it has begun co-operation with the armed forces of China.
Analysts are attributing the dramatic change in the tone to Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes' successful visit to China in April. Mr Fernandes met Defence Minister General Cao Gangchuan and the two men agreed the countries should sort out their long-standing differences amicably.
Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and President Hu Jintao met for the first time on Saturday on the sidelines of the 300th anniversary celebrations of St Petersburg. 'We warmly welcome the Indian prime minister to make [an] important visit to China very soon,' Chinese State Councillor and former foreign minister Tang Jiaxuan told reporters after the meeting.
Ironically, it was Mr Fernandes who set India-China relations plummeting to a new low in 1998 when he branded China as India's No 1 enemy.
Last month, a contrite Mr Fernandes braved the Sars outbreak in a desperate bid to mend fences and pacify lingering Chinese anger at his inflammatory remark. Experts said that Mr Fernandes' visit injected 'positivity' into the troubled relationship.