On Thursday, India and China agreed to ramp up efforts to de-escalate tensions at their volatile border and reduce their troop presence in the region.
Xi-Modi Meeting
The discussion happened at the highest level — Indian PM Narendra Modi met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra told the media that Modi highlighted India’s concerns about their unresolved border issues during what he said was an impromptu meeting with the Chinese leader.
President Xi stressed that improving China-India relations serves common interests of the 2 countries & peoples, and is also conducive to peace, stability & development of the world and the region.
— Embassy of The People's Republic of China in India (@China_Amb_India) August 24, 2023
Kwatra added that both leaders agreed to intensify efforts, but did not give other details of Xi’s response or the rest of the conversation.
According to a message posted on the microblogging website X, formerly known as Twitter, the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi said that Xi had stressed during the meeting that “improving China-India relations serves [the] common interests of the [two] countries & peoples, and is also conducive to peace, stability & development of the world and the region.”
On Aug 24, President Xi Jinping delivered a remark titled “Hand in Hand Toward a Community of Shared Development” at the BRICS-Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogue. https://t.co/kcAv7iOfkd pic.twitter.com/ZCDAWLkVDa
— Embassy of The People's Republic of China in India (@China_Amb_India) August 24, 2023
Border Tensions
India and China are entering the fourth year of their military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), bringing their relations to a six-year low. The tensions escalated after 20 Indian soldiers died during a physical brawl in Galway Valley in June 2020.
While four rounds of discussions have resulted in disengagement at Galwan Valley, Pangong Lake, and the Gogra and Hot Springs posts, the two sides continue to deploy over 60,000 troops each along their border. Depsang and Demchok remain the most prominent points of tension along the LAC.
In July, Indian National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval told top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi on the sidelines of the BRICS NSAs’ Meeting in Johannesburg that the situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of India has “eroded strategic trust and the public and political basis of the relationship” since 2020, when the Galwan Valley clash occurred.