New Delhi: Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit New Delhi in September for the BRICS Summit, which will be held on September 12 and 13. If confirmed, it will be his first visit to India in seven years and his first trip since the 2020 Galwan Valley clash led to a deterioration in ties between the two countries.
Two Indian sources quoted in the report said the delegation could include around 400 officials, twice the size of the team that accompanied the Chinese premier during his 2019 visit to India. Beijing has not officially confirmed the president’s travel plans. India has not officially announced Xi’s visit either.
Citing three sources, Reuters said Xi is expected to attend the summit with a large delegation. China’s Foreign Ministry said Beijing has always given priority to BRICS and has taken an active part in its activities. We also support India in hosting this year’s BRICS summit and wish India success,” the Chinese side said. The ministry also said it had no information about Xi’s visit that it could provide at present. Foreign affairs expert Wale Avvad said Doval’s visit has two important purposes – talks on the boundary dispute and an invitation to President Xi Jinping to attend the BRICS summit.
“We have always given great importance to BRICS cooperation and actively participated in relevant activities. However, his participation could lead to a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the summit. Such a meeting could provide an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss the next steps in India-China relations.
PM Modi and President Xi met in August last year on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin.
