India’s Modi and Chinese President Xi meet days after a border accord between the countries

NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met Wednesday on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia, in their first bilateral meeting in five years.

The meeting came days after the two giant neighbors announced a border accord aimed at ending a four-year-old standoff involving tens of thousands of their soldiers in mountainous Ladakh, India’s foreign ministry said.

Xi and Modi shook hands against a backdrop featuring their national flags, and both stressed the importance of handling their disputes.

The Chinese leader said the two countries were at a crucial stage of development and “should carefully handle differences and disagreements and facilitate each other’s pursuit of development aspirations.”

“It’s important for both sides to shoulder our international responsibilities, set an example for boosting the strength and unity of the developing countries, and contribute to promoting multi-polarization and democracy in international relations,” Xi said.

“The two leaders affirmed that stable, predictable, and amicable bilateral relations between India and China, as two neighbors and the two largest nations on earth, will have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity,” India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told reporters after the meeting.

India announced on Monday that the two countries agreed to a pact on the resumption of military patrols along their disputed border in the Himalayas after a standoff that began with a deadly clash in 2020.

China confirmed the agreement a day later, saying the two sides had reached resolutions related to their border.

“China will work with India to implement these resolutions properly,” Lin Jian, China’s Foreign Ministry