India, China agree to hold next round of border talks after Modi-Xi meet

Brasilia/Beijing: India and China have agreed to hold another meeting on matters relating to the boundary question after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit here, according to an official statement.
The 21st round of India-China border talks, led by Special Representatives (SR) National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Chinese counterpart and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, were held at Chengdu in China in November last year.
According to a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs, Prime Minister Modi and President Xi “noted that the Special Representatives will have another meeting on matters relating to the boundary question and reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and security along the border areas”.
The statement, however, did not mention the time-frame for the next round of boundary talks. Modi and Xi are in Brazil for the 11th BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Summit. During the 21st round of talks, both the sides resolved to “intensify” and “advance” the dialogue for an early settlement of the boundary dispute, according to the official statements issued by both the sides after the talks. The two officials also emphasised on maintaining peace and tranquillity at the border by the two militaries making use of a number of mechanism worked out to improve the relations between the troops on the ground.
The SR talks are the highest official-level forum with a mandate to discuss not only solution to the boundary issue but also other issues concerning the two countries.
The India-China border dispute covers 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC).
This year’s talks were expected to be held in September in India ahead of Xi’s visit to Chennai last month for the second informal summit with Modi at Mamallapuram. (PTI)