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China-India border dispute
ChinaDiplomacy

China backs India’s hosting of BRICS as summit offers forum to ease border tensions

  • New Delhi is taking over chairmanship of BRICS grouping of nations, whose summit could allow leaders Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi to meet
  • Beijing ‘supports the Indian side in hosting’, Chinese foreign ministry says, days after the neighbours agree to disengage troops

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have addressed their countries’ differences at previous BRICS meetings. Photo: AP
Catherine Wong
China has said it supports India’s chairmanship of the BRICS summit this year, signalling goodwill after the two countries agreed to cool tensions in their months-long border stand-off.
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The neighbours last week pledged to disengage troops from Pangong Tso, a bitterly contested lake area in the western Himalayas, after nine tense months of what has been the worst military confrontation in decades between the nuclear-armed nations.
The two militaries have begun a tenth round of talks aimed at agreeing on the next phase of disengagement.

As New Delhi assumes chairmanship of the annual summit of the BRICS grouping of emerging economies – which also includes Brazil, Russia and South Africa – Beijing’s attitude towards it and any opportunities for Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi one-on-one will be watched closely.

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China shares video of deadly 2020 border clash with Indian troops in Galwan Valley

China shares video of deadly 2020 border clash with Indian troops in Galwan Valley

Asked about Xi’s possible attendance at the summit and whether the border tension would affect their multilateral cooperation, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said BRICS had become an influential grouping and Beijing supported New Delhi’s efforts as host.

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“China attaches great importance to the BRICS mechanism,” Wang said at a regular press conference on Monday. “The Chinese side supports the Indian side in hosting the meeting and is willing to work with India and other BRICS countries in expanding cooperation on economy, politics and people-to-people exchanges.”

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