PM leaves for Japan; Xi meet likely on Sun

Asian Swing

- SHUBHAJIT ROY

PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping are likely to hold a bilateral meeting this Sunday on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin near Beijing as the two countries move to repair ties after a five-year military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.

This will be Modi's first visit to China in seven years and his likely meeting with Xi — Russian President Vladimir Putin is also expected to attend the Tianjin summit — will take place amid the strain in ties between Delhi and Washington over the issue of tariffs, India's purchase of Russian oil and a trade deal that has hit roadblocks.