Xi Jinping to Attend BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Announces Chinese Foreign Ministry

BEIJING:
Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi over the weekend, the country’s Foreign Ministry announced Thursday afternoon.

“At the invitation of Prime Minister of the Republic of India Narendra Modi, President Xi Jinping will attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi from September 12 to 13,” the ministry announced in social media posts.

Earlier in the day, while addressing a regular media briefing in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jia-kun had refused to provide any confirmation on Xi Jinping’s visit to New Delhi.

“I have no information to provide regarding the question you raised,” Guo Jia-kun replied to a question on if the Chinese leader will be travelling to India this weekend to attend the BRICS leaders’ meeting.

This will be the Chinese President’s first visit to India in nearly seven years and takes place as both countries work on stabilising bilateral ties following the deadly 2020 Galwan clashes.

India has repeatedly highlighted the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas for the continued development and progress of the bilateral relationship

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping, who interacted briefly during the recent Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit held in Bishkek, are expected to hold detailed bilateral discussions on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi this weekend.

Earlier this month, following the understandings reached between the special representatives of India and China in August 2025 and August 2026 and subsequent discussions at the Working Mechanisms for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) mechanisms, the first senior highest military commander-level flag meeting was held along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) at Vacha on the Indian side in Arunachal Pradesh on September 6 and at Damai on the Chinese side on September 7.

On August 25, National Security Advisor (NSA) and Special Representative of India on India-China Boundary Question, Ajit Doval, highlighted the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas for the continued development and progress of the bilateral relationship during the 25th Round of the Special Representatives Talks on the India-China Boundary Question held in Beijing.

NSA Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is also the Chinese Special Representative and Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission, held comprehensive, in-depth, friendly, and candid discussions on the China-India boundary issue and bilateral relations during the meeting.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the two sides noted the progress made in implementing the important consensus reached between their leaders – Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping – in Kazan in October 2024 and Tianjin in August 2025. They also expressed satisfaction at the steady resumption of people-to-people and cross-border exchanges, including the ongoing Kailash Manasarovar Yatra and border trade through the three designated border trading passes.

“Under the strategic guidance of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping, and in a constructive and forward-looking spirit, the two Special Representatives had a candid and in-depth exchange of views on the India-China Boundary Question, and agreed to continue their work in seeking a political settlement of the boundary question in the context of their overall and long-term interests,” read a statement issued by the MEA after the meeting.