India reiterated that mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity must remain the guiding principles for its relationship with China on Tuesday, as the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) shared details of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi.
Briefing the media on recent diplomatic developments in the by-weekly press briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Prime Minister Modi raised India’s concerns during his meeting with Xi and stressed the need for both sides to remain sensitive to each other’s core interests.
“Prime Minister referred to Indian concerns as well and underlined that both sides should show sensitivity to each other’s core concerns and be guided by the ‘three mutuals’: mutual respect, mutual interest, and mutual sensitivity,” Jaiswal said.
Modi stresses importance of border peace
During the meeting, Modi also emphasised that peace and tranquillity along the India-China border remain essential for the continued development of bilateral ties.
According to the MEA’s statement issued after the talks, Modi stressed that “peace and tranquillity in the border areas remain an essential basis for the continued development of bilateral relations”.
He also underlined the need for both countries to adhere to existing agreements and understandings concerning the border.
The two leaders also agreed that efforts to resolve the boundary question should continue from a strategic and long-term political perspective. Both sides expressed their commitment to finding a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution.
The MEA said the leaders also agreed to expand common ground on regional and global issues and work together to address shared challenges.
India, China differ in diplomatic readouts
The separate readouts issued by New Delhi and Beijing highlighted some differences in how the two sides presented the Modi-Xi meeting.
China’s statement described India and China as “partners rather than rivals”. New Delhi, however, did not use the same formulation in its official communication, instead emphasising mutual respect, shared challenges and the need to address core concerns.
The Chinese readout also said India reiterated specific positions on Taiwan and Tibet and would not allow activities against China to be carried out from Indian territory.
Beijing’s statement noted that India “will not allow any force to engage in anti-China activities on its territory”.
India’s official communication, meanwhile, focused on the broader framework guiding bilateral ties, including the importance of respecting each other’s core concerns and maintaining peace and tranquillity along the border.
BRICS Summit concludes in New Delhi
The Modi-Xi meeting took place on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit, hosted at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
The summit concluded with the adoption of the New Delhi Declaration 2026, which addressed a range of global issues, including geopolitical conflicts and tensions in West Asia.
The latest diplomatic engagement between Modi and Xi comes against the backdrop of efforts by India and China to stabilise their bilateral relationship while continuing discussions on the boundary question and other areas of mutual concern.
(with ANI inputs)
