Amid Border Tensions, Chinese FM Qin Gang To Visit India To Attend G20 Meet

Relations between India and China have been strained since the eastern Ladakh military standoff between the two countries in May 2020.

Beijing: Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang will travel to India this week to take part in the G20 Foreign Ministers meeting on March 2, the Foreign Ministry announced here on Tuesday.

Qin's visit to India will be the first by the Chinese Foreign Minister after his predecessor Wang Yi's visit to New Delhi in 2019 to attend the Special Representatives dialogue on the border mechanism.

Wang and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were the Special Representatives.

At the invitation of his Indian counterpart Minster S Jaishankar, Foreign Minister Qin will attend the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in New Delhi, India, on March 2, the announcement here said.

Relations between India and China have virtually frozen ever since the eastern Ladakh military standoff between the two countries in May 2020.

The two countries have held 17 high-level military commanders talks to resolve the standoff.

India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

India assumed the Presidency of the G20 on December 1, last year.

The G20 members represent around 85 per cent of the global GDP, over 75 per cent of the global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population.

The member countries include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, and the USA.