New Delhi, August 24: On sidelines of the BRICS summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had interactions with other BRICS leaders, said Foreign Secretary Kwatra. In conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping, PM Modi highlighted India’s concerns on unresolved issues along LAC, said Kwatra.
The PM underlined that maintenance of peace, tranquillity in border areas and respecting LAC was essential for normalisation of India-China ties, Kwatra added.
Taking about the eastern Ladakh row, Kwatra said Modi and Xi agreed to direct relevant officials to intensify efforts at expeditious disengagement, de-escalation.
Earlier, Modi and Xi Jinping were seen having brief exchanges ahead of a media briefing by the BRICS leaders in Johannesburg.
Modi and Xi are in the South African city of Johannesburg to attend the annual summit of BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa).
Modi is travelling to Greece on Thursday evening after concluding his engagements in the South African city.
The prime minister and the Chinese president had a brief encounter at a dinner during the G20 summit in Bali in November last year.
The ties between India and China came under severe strain following the eastern Ladakh border row that began in May 2020.
Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an over three-year standoff in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.
India and China held the 19th round of Corps Commander-level talks on August 13 and 14 with a focus on resolving pending issues at the standoff areas of Depsang and Demchok in eastern Ladakh.
A joint statement described the talks as “positive, constructive and in-depth” and that both sides agreed to resolve the remaining issues in an expeditious manner.
Days after the fresh round of high-level talks, the local commanders of the two militaries held a series of negotiations in two separate locations to resolve issues in Depsang Plains and Demchok. (Agencies)