Ending weeks of speculation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a brief meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of BRICS Summit and highlighted India's concerns on the unresolved issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
According to Indian Foreign Secretary, Vinay Kwatra, the two leaders "agreed to direct relevant officials to intensify efforts at expeditious disengagement and de-escalation”.
“The prime minister underlined that the maintenance of peace and tranquility in the border areas, and observing and respecting the LAC are essential for the normalisation of the India-China relationship”, Kwatra said.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi and the Chinese president shook hands and greeted each other ahead of the BRICS leaders' briefing.
Both the leaders were seen interacting briefly on the stage. The prime minister had shook hands with Jinping who smiled at him.
This was the first interaction between the two leaders after the meeting at G20 dinner in Bali last November. It was the first meeting between Modi and Xi Jinping since the Indian and Chinese armies clashed at Galwan Valley in 2020.
It is worth mentioning that the two armies recently held 19th round of corps commander level talks.
According to a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs,“They agreed to resolve the remaining 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 the peace and tranquility on the ground in the border areas".
Of course during his stay in Johannesburg, the PM had structured meetings with leaders of several countries including leaders of new entrants to BRICS such as Iran, Mozambique, Ethiopia and Senegal.
Modi had earlier met host and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Kwatra maintained that Prime Minister's visit to Johannesburg has been very fruitful and productive. The roles played by China and India are considered crucial for BRICS. New members have been included this year.
“If it weren’t for China — and India, to some degree — there wouldn’t be much of a BRIC story to tell,” economist Jim O’Neill wrote in 2021. “Beyond creating the BRICS Bank, now known as the New Development Bank, it is difficult to see what the group has done other than meet annually.” Paradoxically, 20 years ago in 2001, noted British economist at U.S. megafirm Goldman Sachs, O'Neill came up with the acronym “BRIC” — Brazil, Russia, India and China stating that this bloc can capture the collective power of these major economies on the world stage. South Africa joined later.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that inclusion of new members gives a message to all such fora to transform with changing times.
“We would be able to give new dynamism to BRICS by working with new member countries of the grouping”.
He said that India has historic ties with all the six new members of BRICS --- Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
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