China’s new India envoy urges neighbours to ‘get along well’ amid talk of Xi-Modi meeting and border military build-up
- Chinese ambassador Xu Feihong presents credentials at ceremony in New Delhi, filling 18-month vacancy as tensions grow along disputed Himalayan border
- It is speculated that if Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reelected this month, he might meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazakhstan in July
Xu, who arrived in New Delhi three weeks ago to fill an 18-month vacancy, was among seven envoys who presented their letters of credence to Indian President Droupadi Murmu at the presidential residence on Friday.
According to the Chinese embassy in India, Xu also paid a courtesy call to Murmu, during which the ambassador called for joint efforts to “enhance political mutual trust, manage differences properly, and advance mutual beneficial cooperation so as to bring China-India relations forward along the right track”.
He also called for the two sides to explore ways for “major neighbouring countries to get along well with each other”.
Xu’s appointment, which was announced in early May, filled the post’s longest vacancy since 1976. His predecessor, Sun Weidong, left in November 2022 and took a vice-ministerial role at the foreign ministry in Beijing.
Ties between the two Asian powers have deteriorated sharply since 2020, after the Chinese and Indian militaries clashed at multiple locations along their disputed Himalayan border, resulting in casualties on both sides.