BRICS summit: Keen to bury 'Doklam ghost', India hints before Modi-Xi meet

Modi and Xi will meet on the sidelines of the three-day BRICS summit on Tuesday

Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis bilateral meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Xiamen, India has hinted that it wants to move on from the tense Doklam dispute, which had plunged bilateral ties to a new low.

"We want to bury the ghost of the D-word (Doklam) for the engagement in future," a source said here.

The over two-month military stand-off between China and India at Doklam in the Sikkim sector had hit bilateral ties hard. The dispute was resolved last week with both armies retreating from the point of the face-off.

It is important for both countries to move forward, the source said.

Modi and Xi will meet on the sidelines of the three-day BRICS summit with a range of issues likely to be discussed.
 

On Sunday, addressing the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum, Xi said people want peace, not conflict and it was imperative to solve the international hotspot issues.

Last week, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing wants a long-term solution to the dispute.
 

Besides, India has pushed for a "strong" joint BRICS declaration on terrorism which was being negotiated till late Sunday night.

"We expect a strong joint declaration on terror," the source said.

Modi arrived in China's southeastern city of Xiamen for the annual summit of the five member bloc (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa)
 

Egypt, Kenya, Tajikistan, Mexico, and Thailand have been invited by China as special guests for the BRICS summit.