One of the most awaited bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the BRICS summit was that between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian PM Modi. In the event, the meeting was convivial without being substantial. Both countries stuck to their tradition of issuing separate readouts, which in diplomacy means either the officials did not have time to draft a Joint Statement or differences persisted to prevent one from being issued. It is safe to assume that it was the latter in this case.
What then to make of the Modi-Xi meeting? It is hard to disregard the attempts by both sides to seek mutual rapprochement. It is possible this rapprochement, at least from the Chinese side, is more tactical. The fact that President Xi Jinping is meeting President Trump shortly may have also played its part. The evidence for this rapprochement from China lies in the statement by the Chinese side for the first time ever that “The two sides should stay committed to advancing bilateral relations and resolving the boundary question, seek parallel, mutually reinforcing progress, and maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas”. So far, it is the Indian side which has been saying loud and clear that peace and tranquility on the border is essential for continued development of bilateral relations. Hitherto, the Chinese position has been that the border issue must be properly placed in the context of the overall bilateral ties. By explicitly accepting the link between the border issue and bilateral ties, and by going further to state that the two sides should seek parallel and mutually reinforcing progress in both issues, the Chinese side has seemingly departed from its traditional script to accomodate the Indian position. We will see whether they stick to this line. For, this implies that if peace and tranquility breaks down on the border, then India and/or China will be justified in cutting back on bilateral ties. The Indian side’s desire for rapprochement was reflected in the ” Eight points of outcomes and consensus of the 25th round of talks between Special Representatives of China and India on the boundary question” issued as a Joint Statement on 26 August, 2026. After all, the two sides agreed to seek early and substantial harvest of boundary delimitation and border management. Terms of reference for both the Expert Group on Boundary Delimitation and Working Group on Border Management are yet to be agreed upon though.
Having said that, deeper issues remain. The Indian readout mentions, as past ones did with monotonous regularity, the three mutuals: mutual interest, mutual sensitivity and mutual respect; and reiterates for the umpteenth time that differences must not be allowed to become disputes. Neither finds direct resonance with the Chinese side which is surprising since this is largely motherhood and apple pie kind of language. China is instead content to say in their readout (again for the umpteenth time) that China and India are partners, not rivals. Indeed, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi thinks this is the “most important consensus” that was reached by the two leaders on the margins of the BRICS summit. Interestingly, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson quoted PM Modi as saying India has an independent foreign policy and that India will not allow any force to engage in anti-China activities on its territory. The spokesperson went on to say that China values PM Modi’s statements in this context. The Indian readout does not make a reference to this purported statement by our PM.
At the end of the day, if China wants to be India’s partner and not its rival, it should prove that through its actions. As the bigger country, it can begin by engaging with India to find a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the border issue, commit itself fully to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India and at least not prevent, if not actively encourage, the rise of India. China can also coooperate much more with India in UN and other fora. China harping on India’s independent foreign policy is a not so subtle reference to our ties with the US. But that is an argument India can make too, with regard to China’s ties with some of India’s neighbours.
India does not have the luxury of non-engagement with China. Not only is China a powerful neighbour with a long and disputed border with India, but it is an extremely critical commercial and trading partner for India. India may possess far less clout than China, but it is in the latter’s interest to also engage with India in good faith so that the structural impediments in the relationship are resolved where possible and managed where necessary and most important, are not allowed to completely derail bilateral ties. Such an eventuality does neither country any good in dealing with the geopolitical turbulence the world is witnessing. If there is one positive from the most recent Xi-Modi meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Delhi, it may be this mutual realization on the part of both countries.
Dr Mohan Kumar is a former Indian Ambassador to France and is currently Dean/Professor at O.P. Jindal Global University in India. Views are personal.
Diplomacy and Geopolitics 