BRICS Summit: PM Modi to meet China's Xi today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday on the sidelines of the ongoing BRICS summit at Xiamen.

"PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping to hold bilateral meeting at 12:30pm (10am IST) tomorrow in Xiamen," MEA officials told PTI on Monday.

Earlier in the day, China had also indicated that there will be a meeting between President Xi and PM Modi during the five-nation plenary, but declined to say whether the Dokalam issue will figure in their talks.

"I believe my colleagues have said from this podium that as a host China will arrange meetings with participating leaders," foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang told the media here, replying to a question about a possible Modi-Xi meeting.

Geng had not specified when the meeting would be held.

Prime Minister Modi is in Xiamen to attend the annual summit of BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - a grouping of the five emerging economies.
The summit attended by Modi along with leaders of the five countries is due to end on Tuesday.

Geng evaded a direct answer to a question whether the recent bilateral tensions over Dokalam standoff would figure in the talks between the two leaders.
"Details of the meeting we will release in due course," he said.

The meet comes days after India and China last month ended a 73-day standoff in Doklam by withdrawing troops from the area.

PTI