New Delhi:As soon as Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in South Africa on Tuesday to attend the 15th BRICS summit in Johannesburg, the focus shifted to his possible meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the border standoff.
Prime Minister was warmly welcomed by Paul Shipokosa Mashatile, Deputy President of South Africa, at the airport. A ceremonial welcome was also accorded to him. Speculations grew after Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra on Monday said that schedule for PM's bilateral discussion was still being decided but he did not deny the possibility of a meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of various BRICS events commencing with leaders retreat on Tuesday evening.
Last week, both sides held talks and issued a joint cordial statement as they sought a breakthrough on issues in an expeditious manner and maintain the momentum of dialogue and negotiations through military and diplomatic channels. In the interim, the two sides agreed to maintain peace and tranquillity on the ground in the border areas.
“The host country South Africa has invited leaders of a large number of guest countries, besides delegates of BRICS members such as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa who will be present there. The PM’s schedule, in terms of bilateral meetings with those leaders who would be present in South Africa, is still being worked out", Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said during a briefing on the question of whether PM Modi will meet the Chinese President.
Ever since the Galwan Valley clash, there have been several meetings at the foreign and defence minister's level to resolve the conflict but PM Modi and Chinese President Xi have not spoken over the phone or sat down for talks. It is pertinent to note that in September 2022, the two leaders stood next to each other and attended a Leaders’ Lunch at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, but didn’t hold formal talks.
In November 2022, the two leaders were seen talking at a G-20 banquet in Bali after PM Modi walked up to Xi and exchanged greetings, but it was only in July this year. If PM Modi holds a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi this time on the sidelines of BRICS then it will be the first such meeting between the two leaders since the May 2020 LAC standoff.
PM Modi will attend the BRICS business forum meeting on Tuesday followed by the BRICS leaders retreat along with the presidents of China, South Africa, and Brazil. Russian President Putin will attend it virtually. On Wednesday, PM Modi will attend the 15th BRICS summit. Apart from LAC, any bilateral meet between PM Modi and Chinese President Xi is considered crucial for G-20 joint declaration which is currently blocked by Russia and China, to be declared at the G20 summit scheduled to take place in September in New Delhi.
