Kazan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia’s Kazan on Wednesday. Both leaders discussed on a range of issues during their meeting. This was the first formal meeting between the two leaders since the Galwan clashes in 2020 in which 20 Indian soldiers were martyred.
Earlier in a major breakthrough on Monday, both countries reached an agreement on patrolling arrangements. The development led the way for for potential disengagement and easing of tensions between India and China.
Both countries had reached agreements after weeks of intense negotiations between officials of both sides on patrolling arrangements in Depsang and Demchok areas. This breakthrough had lead to speculations that Modi and Jinping may hold formal talks during the BRICS Summit in Russia. Both countries had been locked in a border dispute since deadly clash in 2020 along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.
It may be noted that after the Galwan issue, both leaders had met twice. Their first meeting after the clash was in November 2022 on the sidelines of G20 Summit in Bali, they also met on the sidelines of BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2023. Both these meetings were informal.
(This is a developing story. To be updated)
