Doval in Beijing for 25th India-China border talks

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval arrived in Beijing on Monday for the 25th round of India-China Special Representative talks on the boundary dispute, scheduled for Tuesday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The mechanism, established in 2003, has not resolved the 3,488-km border dispute but is seen by both sides as a useful tool for managing tensions, the Assam Tribune and ABP Live report.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar reiterated on Saturday that peace along the border is a prerequisite for stable ties, citing a particularly bad patch from summer 2020 to autumn 2024 driven by border developments. China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun called the border situation generally stable. The talks come ahead of the BRICS summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, where Chinese President Xi Jinping is widely expected, potentially allowing a meeting with PM Modi, though Beijing has not confirmed Xi's visit.

India also rejected China's criticism of its decision to name 27 places in Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims as South Tibet. India calls the state an integral part of the country and terms China's rival naming moves as vain and preposterous.