WASHINGTON DC: US President Joe Biden has said that he “hopes” that his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping attends the G20 Summit in India this month.
This comes amid the speculations that President Xi could skip the G20 Summit in New Delhi and instead nominate Chinese Premier Li Qiang to attend the event.
The US President was asked if he is expecting President Xi to attend the G20 Summit, to which he replied, “The answer is I hope he attends the G20 Summit”.
Notably, the G20 was being viewed as a venue where it was expected that President Biden and Xi would meet at the G20 Summit amid escalating trade and geopolitical tensions between the two countries.
Xi last met Biden on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, last November.
Earlier on Thursday, Reuters reported that sources familiar with the matter in India and China have revealed that President Xi Jinping is likely to skip the G20 Summit to be held in India next week.
On Xi’s behalf, Chinese Premier Li Qiang is expected to represent Beijing at the September 9-10 meeting in New Delhi, as per two Indian officials, one diplomat based in China and one official working for the government of another G20 country.
However, the spokespersons for the Indian and Chinese foreign ministries did not respond to requests for comment.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a conversation with Chinese President Xi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in which he highlighted India’s concerns at the unresolved issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh with the two leaders agreeing to direct their relevant officials “to intensify efforts at expeditious disengagement and de-escalation”.
India and China have been engaged in a border standoff since 2020 due to the actions of the Chinese Army. There has been disengagement from some friction points along LAC in eastern Ladakh.
India and China held the 19th round of Corps Commander Level talks earlier this month at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point on the Indian side. (ANI)