National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met Chinese Vice President Han Zhang in Beijing on Tuesday as India and China stepped up efforts to maintain peace along their disputed border and improve bilateral relations.
Doval is in China for the latest round of Special Representatives talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the long-running boundary dispute. The discussions come ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s expected visit to New Delhi for the BRICS summit on September 12-13.
According to the Indian Embassy, Doval and Han Zhang discussed strengthening peace and tranquillity in border areas. They also reviewed ways to improve India-China relations across economic, political and multilateral platforms.
The talks are significant as ties between the two countries remain affected by the 2020 Galwan Valley clash and the subsequent military stand-off in eastern Ladakh. While both sides have taken steps to reduce tensions, the boundary dispute remains unresolved.
Doval and Wang Yi serve as the Special Representatives for India-China boundary negotiations. The mechanism was established in 2003 to address the 3,488-km border dispute.
China described the Special Representatives dialogue as the main channel for negotiations on the boundary issue. Beijing said the two sides would discuss ways to keep border areas peaceful while also exchanging views on bilateral, regional and international matters.
The latest engagement could help stabilise ties ahead of the BRICS summit, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping may get an opportunity to meet.
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