China’s Xi heads to India for BRICS summit overshadowed by wars

Wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, along with global trade turbulence and energy security, are expected to dominate the summit.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrive for a signing ceremony during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Qingdao, Shandong province, China, on June 10, 2018 [File: Aly Song/Reuters]

Chinese President Xi Jinping has left Beijing en route to New Delhi to attend a BRICS summit, alongside leaders from India, Russia and Iran, as wars, trade and energy test the divided grouping.

Xi departed on Saturday for the 18th BRICS summit at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua reported . His entourage includes Foreign Minister Wang Yi and high-ranking Chinese Communist Party official Cai Qi.

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The conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, along with global trade turbulence and energy security, are expected to dominate the two-day meeting of the 11-nation bloc.

Xi’s visit, his first to India since 2019, will also be closely watched as the biggest step yet in the cautious thaw between the nuclear-armed rivals.

The trip comes six years after a deadly 2020 military clash along their disputed Tibetan border, with ties gradually improving through restored flights, visas and high-level contacts.

The underlying territorial dispute remains unresolved, and both sides retain heavy military deployments along their roughly 3,500-kilometre (2,175-mile) high-altitude border along Tibet.

Beijing said on Friday that it was “ready to work with India … by strengthening communication, enhancing cooperation, and properly handling differences”.

Xi is due to hold face-to-face talks with Modi later on Saturday, according to India’s Ministry of External Affairs.

“They are looking for ‘early and substantial harvest’ when it comes to the border issue,” Pradeep Taneja, a China-India expert at the University of Melbourne, said, as reported by the AFP news agency. “You cannot have a buildup of your forces on the border … but at the same time say ‘we should continue to have people-to-people relations and economic relationships.'”

Deep mistrust remains, however, with their contested Himalayan frontier, a widening trade deficit and strategic rivalry still complicating ties.

Dozens of Tibetans living in exile, like their spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, protested in New Delhi on Friday, waving placards against Xi’s visit.

The Russian and Iranian presidents arrived in the Indian capital on Friday for the summit.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin held talks with Modi on Friday and agreed to further strengthen the “special” relationship between their countries.

During a meeting with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, Modi underscored the need to protect freedom of navigation and commerce, as well as the safety and wellbeing of ships’ crews.

India has navigated the energy crisis caused by the United States-Iran war in part by turning to Russia, despite Moscow’s war in Ukraine and pressure from Washington and other Western capitals.

BRICS was created in 2009 as a forum for major emerging economies seeking greater influence in institutions dominated by Western powers.

中东和乌克兰的战争，以及全球贸易动荡和能源安全问题，预计将成为峰会的主要议题。

2018年6月10日，中国国家主席习近平和印度总理纳伦德拉·莫迪抵达中国山东省青岛市，出席上海合作组织峰会期间的签字仪式。[图片：Aly Song/路透社]

中国国家主席习近平已离开北京前往新德里，与印度、俄罗斯和伊朗的领导人一起出席金砖国家峰会。战争、贸易和能源问题正考验着这个分裂的集团。

据中国官方通讯社新华社报道，习近平主席应印度总理莫迪的邀请，于周六启程前往印度参加第十八届金砖国家峰会。随行人员包括外交部长王毅和中共中央高级官员蔡琦。

（共四篇，此为第一篇）中国国家主席习近平访问埃及总统塞西：为何此事意义重大

列表 2（共 4 条）：多极格局赋予中等强国更多选择，但保障更少。

列表 3/4：下次金砖国家峰会可能达成伊朗停火协议

普京和佩泽什基扬在印度出席金砖国家峰会，但伊朗和乌克兰战争给峰会蒙上阴影，这是四项议题中的第四项。

中东和乌克兰的冲突，以及全球贸易动荡和能源安全问题，预计将主导由11个国家组成的集团为期两天的会议。

习近平此次访问印度，是他自2019年以来首次访问印度，也将受到密切关注，因为这标志着这两个拥有核武器的对手之间谨慎解冻进程中迈出了迄今为止最大的一步。

此次访问距离 2020 年两国在有争议的西藏边界发生致命军事冲突已过去六年，随着航班、签证和高层接触的恢复，两国关系正在逐步改善。

根本的领土争端仍未解决，双方在沿西藏延伸的约 3500 公里（2175 英里）高海拔边界沿线都保持着大量的军事部署。

北京周五表示，“愿与印度合作……通过加强沟通、深化合作、妥善处理分歧”。

据印度外交部消息，习近平将于周六晚些时候与莫迪举行面对面会谈。

据法新社报道，墨尔本大学中印问题专家普拉迪普·塔内贾表示：“他们在边境问题上寻求的是‘早期且实质性的收获’。你不能一方面在边境集结兵力……另一方面又说‘我们应该继续保持人文交流和经济关系’。”

然而，由于喜马拉雅山脉边界争端、贸易逆差扩大和战略竞争，两国之间仍然存在深深的不信任，这些都使两国关系复杂化。

包括他们的精神领袖达赖喇嘛在内的数十名流亡藏人在周五于新德里举行抗议活动，挥舞标语反对习近平的访问。

俄罗斯和伊朗总统于周五抵达印度首都参加峰会。

俄罗斯领导人弗拉基米尔·普京周五与莫迪举行会谈，双方同意进一步加强两国之间的“特殊”关系。

在与伊朗总统马苏德·佩泽什基安会晤期间，莫迪强调了保护航行和贸易自由以及船员安全和福祉的必要性。

尽管莫斯科在乌克兰发动战争，并且面临来自华盛顿和其他西方国家的压力，但印度在一定程度上通过转向俄罗斯来应对由美国-伊朗战争引起的能源危机。

金砖国家成立于2009年，是一个主要新兴经济体寻求在西方大国主导的机构中拥有更大影响力的论坛。