China’s Ambassador to India Xu Feihong said Beijing and New Delhi were arranging a bilateral meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit, framing the talks as part of an effort to keep bilateral relations on a stable, long-term course.
“China will work with India to act on the strategic guidance of the two leaders, handle the bilateral relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective, step up communication, enhance cooperation, properly handle differences, and be friends enjoying good-neighborliness and partners helping each other succeed,” Xu said.
The formulation echoed comments by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning in Beijing on Friday. Mao confirmed that the two sides were arranging the meeting and said it would be the third consecutive year in which Modi and Xi had met, after encounters in Kazan in 2024 and Tianjin in 2025.
Xi is due in New Delhi on Saturday for the September 12-13 summit, his first visit to India in seven years. China’s Foreign Ministry said he would attend and address the BRICS gathering and hold in-depth exchanges with other leaders on the international situation, development of the grouping and practical cooperation.
The Modi-Xi meeting is expected to focus on the gradual stabilisation of relations following years of tension along the Line of Actual Control, while leaving unresolved differences over the boundary, trade, investment and broader strategic issues.
Their engagement follows a series of official contacts intended to restore mechanisms disrupted after the 2020 military confrontation in eastern Ladakh. A disengagement agreement reached in October 2024 helped ease the most immediate border friction, allowing political contacts to resume at a higher level.
The two governments have since reopened or expanded several channels of engagement. Direct passenger air links have begun returning, visa processing has eased in some categories and officials have discussed measures intended to improve business and people-to-people exchanges.
A further step came on Saturday when China Southern Airlines announced that it would resume regular passenger services between Guangzhou and New Delhi from September 21, restoring a route suspended in 2020. The move adds to the gradual revival of direct connectivity between the two countries.
Economic ties, however, remain uneven. China was India’s largest source of imports in the 2025-26 financial year, with goods imports valued at about $132 billion, while concerns over the trade imbalance, market access and investment restrictions continue to feature in bilateral discussions.
Despite the diplomatic thaw, both governments continue to approach economic opening cautiously, particularly in sensitive technology and investment sectors, where security reviews and regulatory restrictions remain important considerations for companies seeking broader access to markets.
Officials on both sides have also kept the boundary question under active discussion. National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who serve as the Special Representatives on the boundary issue, held talks in Beijing in August and agreed to continue efforts aimed at maintaining peace and tranquillity in border areas.
Those discussions came alongside broader efforts to restore institutional exchanges. China has repeatedly said the boundary dispute should be managed without allowing it to define the whole relationship, while New Delhi has maintained that peace and stability along the border are essential for normal bilateral ties.
Saturday’s meeting will also take place against a broader BRICS agenda dominated by geopolitical conflicts, trade pressures, financial cooperation and calls from member states for greater influence in global institutions. India is chairing BRICS this year and is hosting leaders from the expanded grouping at Bharat Mandapam.
Beijing has publicly backed India’s presidency. Xu said earlier this week that China supported a successful summit and was ready to work with other members and partners to advance cooperation across the grouping.
