Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold their first “informal summit” in the city of Wuhan, central China, on April 27 and 28. Marking a breakthrough in ties following the tense Doklam military stand off, the meeting comes as concrete evidence that the two leaders are keen to give some momentum to the bilateral relationship. The decision was announced following talks between Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj who was in China on a visit, and her counterpart Wang Yi. The meet will be Modi's fourth visit to China since he took up office, and a second bilateral visit.
Wang described the pending meeting as a “new starting point” in the relationship. Wang called India and China “natural partners” who have no choice but to pursue a lasting friendship and common development agenda. “We will make sure that the informal summit will be a complete success and a milestone in India-China relations. We see socialism with Chinese characteristics entering a new era and India acts as a crucial stage in its development and revitalisation.” Swaraj said, “We believe that our commonalities outweigh our differences and that we must build on our convergences while seeking mutually acceptable resolutions of our differences.”
The meeting can also lead to back-to-back visits for Modi to China as he is scheduled to travel to the country again in June for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. A source said most events planned for the informal summit are one-on-one, even though the core delegation comprising officials in the Ministry of External Affairs who handle China will travel with the Indian PM. Swaraj said, “While making efforts to progress our relations in diverse areas, we underlined that maintaining peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas is an essential pre-requisite for the smooth development of bilateral ties.”
