Chinese foreign minister in India on unannounced visit; here’s what we know

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in New Delhi on Thursday evening after a surprise visit to Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. In Delhi, Wang will meet his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar today in the first highest-level talks between the two countries since the border clashes in eastern Ladakh nearly two years ago.

The Chinese minister’s visit was completely secret and no formal statement has been issued from Delhi or Beijing on his travels to India yet, reports said.

Unlike other foreign dignitaries, Wang arrived in India through a commercial airport instead of a defence facility, ANI reported.

On Friday, Wang met the Indian foreign minister at 11 am. According to reports, the Chinese foreign minister has already met national security adviser Ajit Doval since his arrival in the country.

Till now, there is no indication if the Chinese foreign minister will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his India visit. The Chinese side had requested the minister meet the Indian Prime Minister.

The foreign ministers are likely to discuss geopolitical tensions arising out of the Russian invasion of Ukraine rather than bilateral ties, PTI reported. Both China and India consider Russia as an ally and have rejected Western calls for condemnation of Moscow for its military operation in Ukraine.

However, the two countries could also deliberate on the way forward in resolving the two-year old military stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

India is likely to press for complete disengagement of troops in the friction points along the LAC, PTI reported.

Although there are no reports on the discussions held with Doval, it is believed that the border issue would have extensively featured during the meeting between Wang and Doval.

It was China which had proposed the minister’s visit to New Delhi as part of his tour of the region. India is said to have been reluctant to accept the proposal initially.

Wang’s visit comes a day after the Indian Ministry of External Affairs sharply rebuked his “uncalled for” comments while referring to Jammu and Kashmir at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting in Pakistan.

“On Kashmir, we have heard again today the calls of many of our Islamic friends. And China shares the same hope,” Wang had said in Islamabad.

Following the comments, Arindam Bagchi, spokesperson for the MEA, said the ministry rejected the uncalled for reference to India by the Chinese foreign minister.

“Matters related to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir are entirely the internal affairs of India. Other countries, including China, have no locus standi to comment,” Bagchi said.

Wang, who visited Islamabad on Tuesday, will fly to Kathmandu, Nepal, for the next leg of his whirlwind tour of South Asia between March 25 and 27. Before coming to India, Wang had travelled to Afghanistan on Thursday to meet with Afghan leaders in Kabul.