- Sunday, April 28, 2024
The ties between India and China came under severe strain following the eastern Ladakh border row that began in May 2020.
By: Shubham Ghosh
AS speculation was rife over the possibility of a meeting between Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and Chinese president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit which concluded in Johannesburg in South Africa on Thursday (24), the two leaders were seen having a brief exchange the same day ahead of a media briefing by the leaders of the bloc.
A video footage showed the two Asian leaders engaging in a brief talk as they walked towards the media briefing table.
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There was, however, no official remark on the exchange from either side which doesn’t share a rosy relationship owing to a disturbed border.
The ties between India and China came under severe strain following the eastern Ladakh border row that began in May 2020.
Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an over three-year standoff in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.
India and China held the 19th round of Corps Commander-level talks on August 13 and 14 with a focus on resolving pending issues at the standoff areas of Depsang and Demchok in eastern Ladakh.
Modi and Xi did not have much talks on the various international platforms where they represented their respective countries over the past few years. Last November, they were seen engaging in a similar brief exchange in Bali, Indonesia, during a G20 summit. In September last year, the two also shared the stage at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Samarkand in Uzbekistan but did not speak.
Modi is travelling to Greece on Thursday evening after concluding his engagements in South Africa.
(With PTI inputs)
