BRICS Summit 2017: Xi Jinping now calls for diplomacy to resolve 'hotspot issues'

04 Sep 2017

Days after China threatened to use force to end a 73-day troop stand-off in the Doklam area of Bhutan on the India-Bhutan-China border near Sikkim, Chinese President Xi Jinping today called for diplomatic solutions to bilateral and multilateral issues.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jinping are expected to hold bilateral talks on Tuesday, almost a week after the resolution of the 73-day standoff in Doklam.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday emphasised that BRICS must uphold the value of diplomacy to resolve "hotspot issues".

In what seemed to be a late realisation on the over-two-month-long Doklam standoff between India and China, Jinping said "peace and development" should be the foundation to resolve issues as the world does not want "conflict and confrontation."

While the standoff that began on 16 June after Indian troops stopped Chinese road construction in the Doklam are - the India-China-Bhutan tri-junction – ended last week, India says the border dispute was yet to be resolved and that China should "desist from changing the status quo".

Prime minister Modi, arrived in Xiamen on Sunday to attend the BRICSsummit, which begins on Monday. Modi and Jinping are expected to hold bilateral talks on Tuesday, almost a week after the resolution of the 73-day standoff.

Modi will be travelling to Myanmar for a bilateral visit after the conclusion of the summit.