President Xi Jinping Visits New Delhi for BRICS Summit and Meeting with Prime Minister Modi

Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in New Delhi to attend the 18th BRICS Leaders' Summit and hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This visit marks President Xi's first trip to India in nearly seven years, following his last visit in October 2019. The summit, hosted at Bharat Mandapam, includes leaders from member nations such as Russia, Iran, South Africa, Egypt, and others. Russian President Vladimir Putin also arrived in New Delhi for the event, noting that BRICS countries represent more than half of the world's population.

The agenda for the Modi and Xi meeting is expected to cover the long running boundary dispute, bilateral ties, and regional security. Specific points of contention include India's concerns over China's planned 137 billion dollar mega dam on the Brahmaputra river and reports of fresh tensions between troops in Arunachal Pradesh. Conversely, China has expressed a desire to handle differences from a strategic height and maintain momentum in high level engagement. In a sign of improving ties, China Southern Airlines announced the resumption of regular passenger flights between Guangzhou and New Delhi starting September 21, ending a six year hiatus.

Outlets with a center lean frame the event as part of a broader strategic calculation by President Xi, suggesting his diplomacy serves to manage trade tensions and build a Global South coalition ahead of a planned visit to Washington. Outlets with a center right lean focus more heavily on the specific bilateral frictions between India and China, emphasizing the border disputes and the necessity of normalizing diplomatic relations.