New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, where PM Modi underscored that
peace and tranquillity along the border are crucial for advancing
India-China relations, urging strict adherence to existing border
management agreements.

PM Modi stressed that peace and tranquillity along the border are
essential for the continued development of India-China relations,
urging strict observance of existing border agreements.

Both leaders reaffirmed the need for a strategic and long-term
perspective on their ties, ensuring differences do not escalate into
disputes.

Modi and Xi committed to a fair, reasonable, and mutually acceptable
resolution of the boundary question, guided by mutual respect,
sensitivity, and interest.

Discussions also covered economic concerns, including structural trade
imbalance, supply chain issues, and the need for predictable market
access.

The meeting aimed to further promote cultural exchanges, business
linkages, and greater mobility between the two countries, while
expanding common ground on regional and global issues.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday conveyed to Chinese President
Xi Jinping that peace and tranquillity along the frontier remains
essential for development of India-China relations, emphasising that
existing agreements on border management must be strictly observed.

In their talks on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, the two leaders
reaffirmed that both the countries should take a strategic and
long-term perspective of their ties and differences should not become
disputes, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

On the economic front, Modi and Xi underlined the need to address each
other's concerns, including structural trade imbalance and supply
chain issues, and facilitation of meaningful and predictable market
access, it said.

The two leaders expressed commitment to a 'fair, reasonable, and
mutually acceptable' resolution of the boundary question proceeding
from the political perspective of their overall bilateral relations
and the long-term interests of the two sides, it said.

In his remarks, Modi highlighted that both sides must be 'guided by
three mutuals -- mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual
interest' in the ties.

The meeting took place hours after Xi arrived in the national capital
on a two-day visit to attend the BRICS summit, marking his first trip
to India in seven years.

Xi's visit to India came on the heels of several high-level exchanges,
including the Special Representative dialogue in Beijing between
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang
Yi, even as lingering concerns remain over aggressive Chinese military
posturing along the Arunachal Pradesh sector.

Modi and Xi held wide-ranging talks on August 31 last year on the
margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in
Chinese city of Tianjin. In the last few months, the two sides have
taken a series of measures to rebuild their relationship after it came
under severe strain following the deadly Galwan Valley clashes in
2020.

The MEA said the two leaders welcomed the steady progress in
India-China relations since their last meeting in Tianjin and
reaffirmed that 'both countries should take a strategic and long-term
perspective of their ties'.

'The prime minister emphasised that peace and tranquillity in the
border areas remains an essential basis for the continued development
of bilateral relations,' it said.


'He underlined the need for both sides to observe existing agreements
and understandings on border related issues,' it added.

The MEA said the 'two leaders took note of the progress in
people-to-people ties and underscored the need to further promote
cultural exchanges, business linkages and greater mobility between the
two countries'.

'The two leaders agreed that both sides must continue to expand common
ground on regional and global issues, and in addressing challenges,'
it said.

The prime minister appreciated China's support for India's BRICS
chairship and its contributions towards the success of the grouping's
summit.

In his televised opening remarks, Xi said Beijing has always viewed
the development of India-China relations from a 'strategic and
long-term perspective'.

"Although our national conditions differ, we can fully support each
other and pursue common development path," he said in Mandarin.

"Faced with a complex and intertwined international situation, China
and India -- as the world's two most populous countries and key
members of the Global South -- shoulder significant responsibilities,"
he said.

"Both sides should keep the future of humanity and the well-being of
our people in mind. We must join hands to promote cooperation and
strive for an inclusive economic future," he said.

Background on India-China Relations
After over four years of frosty ties over the eastern Ladakh military
standoff, India and China began to repair the relations following a
meeting between Modi and Xi in the Russian city of Kazan in October
2024 that took place after the face-off ended.

The talks between Modi and Xi covered a range of issues including
reducing their trade deficit, tackling challenges like terrorism and
ensuring fair trade in multilateral platforms.