PM Modi-Xi Jinping Bilateral Likely At BRICS Summit, First Since 2020 Galwan Clash

The first-ever face-to-face bilateral meeting between and Chinese President Xi Jinping is likely to take place in New Delhi, on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit on 12 September, following the Galwan clash in 2020.

Xi Jinping will reach New Delhi on Saturday for the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit hosted by India on September 12 and 13. But India and China have not officially agreed on the proposed bilateral meeting yet.

Both countries are trying to take the initial steps to thaw cold military standoffs and strained diplomatic and economic ties that have existed for years along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) since the possible talks.

The Chinese President’s visit would mark the first in a series of seven visits to India since the border crisis broke out in 2020.

Modi and Xi last met at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan at which they shook hands but did not hold a formal bilateral meeting.

Such a gathering in New Delhi thus would be a major high-level engagement between the two countries.

The arrangements for Xi’s visit are in the backdrop of improving diplomatic relations between New Delhi and Beijing.

The NSA, Ajit Doval, went to China for high-level talks in August. The two countries have also held talks with the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on border affairs.

Their Special Representatives have separately dealt with the boundary question.

The increased diplomatic engagement comes as both sides seek to de-escalate the risk of further military clashes in the wake of the withdrawal of troops from some areas of friction on the LAC.

The India-China relations also faced a significant blow in June 2020, when the soldiers of both sides clashed violently in the Galwan Valley in the eastern Ladakh.

However, twenty Indian soldiers died and China later confirmed the deaths of four Chinese soldiers.

The standoff dragged on, and strained the political, diplomatic and economic relations of both nations.

Since then, several rounds of talks – both military and diplomatic – have been held. The general boundary dispute is unsolved, but tensions have been defused at various points where troops have pulled back.

The Modi-Xi meeting at this juncture, then, would have significant diplomatic ramifications. While there are signs of stabilisation along the Ladakh sector, there is an unresolved difference on the larger boundary in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Indian state is claimed by China as its own and is called “Zangnan” or southern Tibet. India has always denied Beijing’s claim and asserted that Arunachal Pradesh is part of India.

The eastern region has also been a cause of worry due to recent reports of escalation in the military activity and heightened military posturing in the Upper Subansiri region of Arunachal Pradesh by the Chinese side.

China has also at times provided its names for locations in Arunachal Pradesh. The practice has been rejected by New Delhi, which says that renaming places cannot change their territorial or legal status.

India has also defied China over its choice of 27 locations and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh by calling them by their local names.

The two leaders will also discuss the broader regional dynamics, such as the economic pressures caused by the US tariff measures and instability associated with the conflict in West Asia.

Engaging with Beijing again would likely mean that New Delhi considers two priorities: continuing to keep the border peace and stability and finding more opportunities for economic and diplomatic cooperation that would benefit India’s strategic goals.

To this end, Beijing’s greater cooperation with New Delhi might help consolidate the recent positive development in bilateral relations and expand cooperation on the multilateral platforms, such as BRICS.

If it’s confirmed, the Modi-Xi meeting would then be closely monitored for any signs of hope that the tentative thaw in India-China relations could be a lasting one, leading to greater diplomatic and economic cooperation.