Border issues, global economy to be in focus at Modi-Xi meet

Further steps to normalise India-China ties, including active management of the border to ensure peace, and preserving the global economic order amid turbulence created by US trade policies will be in focus when Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday, people familiar with the matter said.

- Rezaul H Laskar

‘Modi, who is travelling to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, and ‘Xiare set to meet in the northern city of Tianjin on Sunday afternoon for the second time since India and China reached an understanding last October on ending a military standoff on the Line of ‘Actual Control (LAC) that began in ‘April-May 2020. The faceoff took bilateral relations to their lowest point since the border war of 1962.

At his departure, Modi said India is an active and constructive member of the 10-nation bloc. During India’s presidency of the SCO in 2023, the country introduced new ideas and initiated collaboration in innovation, health and cultural exchanges, he said.

India remains committed to ‘working with theSCO members to address “shared challenges and deepen regional cooperation”, he said. “Talso look forward to meeting President Xi Jinping, [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin and other leaders on the sidelines of the summit,” Modi said.