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- Prime Minister Modi and President Xi met at BRICS Summit.
- Modi stressed border peace and existing agreements are vital.
- Xi called for strategic view, managing differences, border tranquility.
- Leaders addressed boundary issues amid ongoing India-China tensions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a long bilateral meeting in New Delhi on Saturday on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in which both sides primarily discussed issues related to the de-facto border or the Line of Actual Control (LAC). During the meeting, Prime Minister Modi spoke about the existing border agreements with President Xi even as he reiterated that “peace and tranquility” in the border areas continues to remain a prerequisite for India in the development of the bilateral relationship.
This is President Xi’s first to India in seven years and first trip since the 2020 Galwan border clash. Xi last visited India in October 2019 for the India-China Informal Summit with Modi in Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu. Both leaders last met in Tianjin, China in August 2025 on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit.
“They (Modi and Xi) reaffirmed that both countries should take a strategic and long term perspective of their ties. Differences should not become disputes. Prime Minister highlighted that both sides must be guided by three mutuals- mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interest,” said a readout issued by the Ministry of External Affairs after both leaders held an hourlong meeting in the capital’s Bharat Mandapam where the BRICS meeting was held.
The statement also said, “Prime Minister emphasized that peace and tranquility in the border areas remains an essential basis for the continued development of bilateral relations. He underlined the need for both sides to observe existing agreements and understandings on border related issues.”
It added, “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 peoples.”
This assumes greater significance due to the fact that this meeting comes within days of the 25th Round of the Special Representatives (SR) Talks on the India-China Boundary Question in Beijing on August 25, 2026. During this meeting both sides discussed an “early and substantial harvest of boundary delimitation and border management” even as they came up with eight points of outcomes and consensus.
India and China have six border agreements or protocols. These are: 1993 Agreement (mandated maintaining peace and tranquility along the LAC, 1996 Agreement (introduced confidence-building measures and prohibited the use of military capability against each other), 2005 Protocol (Laid down the specific modalities, procedures, and timelines for handling face-to-face situations), 2012 Agreement (Established the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination to monitor border affairs), 2013 Border Defence Cooperation Agreement (BDCA): Prohibited tailing or following each other’s patrols and 2015 Modalities: Added new Border Personnel Meeting (BPM) points and hotlines.
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While the inclusion of “substantial harvest” signals a proactive push toward resolving portions of the border, in reality, under the foundational 2005 Agreement on Political Parameters, the border dispute was always meant to be treated as a single “package settlement”.
Xi Shares Four Points – Talks of ‘Restart’ to ‘Further Enhancement’
Chinese President Xi, meanwhile, shared four points on “promoting the steady and long-term development of China-India relations.”
“Xi Jinping pointed out that China has always viewed and developed its relations with India from a strategic and long-term perspective. In the past two years, he and Prime Minister Modi have met twice, guiding China-India relations from a restart to a further enhancement,” said a readout issued by Beijing on Saturday.
According to Xi, both India and China “should eliminate interference with the political wisdom of mutual respect and understanding. We should commit to the parallel development and mutual promotion of bilateral relations and border issues, maintaining peace and tranquility in border areas.”
He also said, “Both sides should work together to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas.”
“China and India have different national conditions, and can fully learn from each other’s strengths, support each other, achieve mutual success, and develop together. Faced with a complex and volatile international situation, China and India, as the world’s two most populous countries and important members of the Global South, shoulder important responsibilities,” said Xi.
The situation along the border areas continues to be fraught with tension, as troops from both sides of the LAC are stationed in eastern Ladakh. While some progress has been made with disengagement at a few friction points, which led to a notable agreement in October 2024, the crucial subsequent steps toward de-escalation and troop withdrawal have yet to be implemented.
The October 2024 agreement was pivotal, as it allowed both sides to restore their patrolling rights, effectively diffusing the immediate threat of armed conflict that had loomed over the region. This development has fostered a cautious hope for lasting peace, though uncertainties remain as both sides navigate the complexities of the situation.
