The bilateral meeting between PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia will mark the first face-to-face between the two leaders since the clash in Galwan in 2020. Confirmation of the meeting by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri underlines a positive turn in the relations between India and China after the recent agreements on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control.
Misri announced amid speculation on the renewal of relations between the two countries. “I can confirm that there will be a bilateral meeting held between Prime Minister Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping tomorrow on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit,” he said, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Since the Galwan clash, the two leaders have rarely crossed paths, except for fleeting interactions at the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, in November 2022 and the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, this August. Both are now in Kazan, Russia, to attend the summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The breakthrough in the patrolling arrangement comes four years after tensions in the Galwan Valley clash and could signal de-escalation in a region where both countries have deployed large numbers of troops. “This arrangement aims to restore the pre-2020 status quo, thus facilitating confidence-building between New Delhi and Beijing.
The incident in the Galwan Valley on June 15, 2020, caused casualties on both sides and heightened the ante in the bilateral relations between India and China. Although both sides have taken steps toward de-escalation, the absolute return of the situation to that before Galwan has remained elusive.
Tensions continue and have started impacting almost all levels of the bilateral relationship, even suspending direct flights between India and China for four years. Visas for Chinese technicians were also under immense scrutiny, while investments by Chinese firms had to be scrutinized and cleared on various security grounds.
