Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said that his trip to Durban for the fifth BRICS Summit will be an opportunity for him to not only greet the new Chinese President Xi Jinping personally, but also to discuss how New Delhi and Beijing can maintain the positive trajectory of their relationship.
China on Thursday said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia's Kazan on Wednesday carries a "great significance" as they reached an "important common understandings" to improve the bilateral ties.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval is likely to travel to Beijing within the next few weeks to lead the Indian delegation at a new edition of the Special Representatives dialogue on the larger boundary question that will be held after a gap of nearly five years, authoritative sources said.
Consensus remained elusive on a common BRICS currency as business leaders from the five-bloc nations debated the pivotal issue at a business forum on the periphery of a summit of the five-member bloc being hosted here by South Africa. In their two addresses at the Summit so far, the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have made no or scant references to the issue either. "The BRICS Business Forum discussed the international payments system in detail. "Participants also debated the question of whether a BRICS currency is possible or desirable, with strong views expressed both for and against and little consensus reached," Sim Tshabalala, chief executive of Standard Bank Group, told several hundred captains of industry from the partner countries and over 40 other nations across the globe at the Summit.
India and Russia always stood "shoulder-to-shoulder" even in the most difficult situations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, against the backdrop of possibly the worst phase in New Delhi's ties with the US in over two decades.
Sheela Bhatt, who traveled with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the BRICS Summit in Durban, gauges the buzz ahead of the event that begins Tuesday.
Putin said that the Indian leader had "aptly" noted that it is "not an anti-western one but a non-western one".
The leaders of the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa grouping on Thursday collectively voiced their opposition to the use of force in Libya and pitched for a central role for the United Nations and regional organisations in resolving the matter.Reflecting on the situation in the Middle East and north African countries at the BRICS Summit, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh observed that there was a "shift of power towards ordinary citizens".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said it is important for India and China to work together to bring stability to the world economic order as he asserted that New Delhi is ready to advance bilateral ties from a strategic and long-term perspective based on mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity.
China's military has said it is willing to work with India to find a solution to the border issue, while also pushing for sound and stable defence ties. The statement comes after recent meetings between officials from both countries to normalize relations following a prolonged period of tension.
Group still far from coordinating monetary/forex policy
...although issues like capital, membership and governance are still bogging the plan.
Narendra Modi's success at the BRICS summit is the best Diwali gift for India's diplomacy and marks her ascendancy to global leadership, says Tarun Vijay.
China firmly opposes the Trump administration's 50 percent tariffs on India as it is "unfair and unreasonable" and New Delhi and Beijing should scale up economic ties to jointly counter the challenge, Chinese ambassador Xu Feihong said on Monday.
Trump couldn't care less anymore about the Israeli demand for Iran's 'de-nuclearisation' and 'de-militarisation.' Trump pins hopes on a grand bargain with Iran as a partner in America First, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The summit is being attended by more than 30 heads of state and top officials from the European Union and invited guest countries and 14 heads of international organisations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday termed the BRICS as 'Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions'.
India has lodged a "solemn protest" with China over the establishment of two new counties in the Hotan prefecture, as parts of these regions fall within India's union territory of Ladakh. The Indian government asserted that the creation of these counties will not impact its sovereignty over the area and does not lend legitimacy to China's "illegal and forcible" occupation.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday pledged to strengthen the strategic relationships with neighbouring countries by 'appropriately' managing differences and enhancing supply chain ties as China's tariff war with the United States escalated.
'We should watch -- in the near term -- for signs that the two have totally fallen out at a personal, political level.' 'Trump and Modi know how to be dealmakers, but they also know how to hold a grudge.'
Cautioning that the traditional sources of economic growth are under stress coupled with fresh uncertainties around the globe, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday said that it would be to the advantage of five-nation BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) grouping to coordinate in key areas of development.
.jpg)
The ministers also expressed concern over the slow pace of global economic recovery and stressed that 'the uncertainty regarding economic growth and policy responses in developed countries could lead to increased volatility in financial markets and further affect the international economy'.
India and China have not ruled out a Modi-Xi meeting during the summit.
China has said that the disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh by the Chinese and Indian armies is going on "smoothly" following a recent agreement between the two nations.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval arrived in Beijing on Tuesday to take part in the India-China Special Representatives' talks to be held on Wednesday aimed at restoring the bilateral ties stalled for over four years' due to the military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping were on Thursday seen having brief exchanges ahead of a media briefing by the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) leaders in Johannesburg.
Narendra Modi's engagement at the upcoming BRICS Summit in Brazil will be keenly watched as the prime minister will interact with some of the world's most powerful leaders. The summit to be held in Fortaleza will also see the launch of the significant BRICS bank whose idea was mooted by India. Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt gives a lowdown on Modi's first major international rendezvous.
'We need to be very vigilant as we are passing through some fraught times.'
The sources have said that patrolling will begin at these points once the disengagement that began last week is completed and both sides will move their respective troops and dismantle temporary structures.
'Don't play the American game... India is too big for a US game.'
Prime Minister Modi and President Xi held the conversation on Wednesday on the sidelines of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) summit in Johannesburg.
India and China have held their first diplomatic talks since withdrawing troops from two face-off points in eastern Ladakh, reflecting on the lessons learned from the border row to prevent future incidents. The two sides agreed to maintain peace and tranquillity in border areas, prepare for the next meeting of Special Representatives on the boundary question, and highlighted the importance of regular exchanges and contacts at diplomatic and military levels. The talks come after the completion of the disengagement process from the last two friction points, following an agreement finalized in October 2022.
Finance Minister of the BRICS countries had also worked on the idea at various deliberations on the sidelines of the Fund-Bank and G-20 meetings, he said.
Cameron also said Modi has a very clear plan about technology and the future of India and his third consecutive term in office demonstrates the ability to bring real change in a consistent way.
BRICS countries may reach consensus at next month's G20 summit on creating a $100 billion currency reserve fund to help ease short-term liquidity pressure and safeguard financial stability of major emerging economies, a senior Chinese central bank official said.
'New Delhi is not naive about its foreign policy choices.'
India and China have made "some progress" in disengagement, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday, describing it as a "welcome" move which opens up the possibility that other steps could happen.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday that India-China relations have made positive strides and achieved a series of encouraging outcomes at all levels after last year's breakthrough ending the over four-year-long military standoff in eastern Ladakh. Wang's remarks came during his annual press conference as he replied to a question on how Beijing views the course of bilateral ties after the two countries ended the prolonged stalemate in the ties.
"For instance, you generally buy your military gear from Russia. That's a way to kind of get under the skin of America, if you go to buy your armaments from Russia."
In their first structured bilateral talks in nearly five years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping Wednesday agreed that India and China can have a 'peaceful and stable' relationship by displaying maturity and mutual respect and endorsed the pact on the resolution of the dragging eastern Ladakh border row.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances