China on Thursday said President Xi Jinping will not meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany, which begins on Friday.
The atmosphere is not ideal for a bilateral meeting between the two leaders, an official of the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, referring to the continuing India-China standoff in the Doklam region in the Sikkim sector.
Indian responded saying there was no bilateral meeting scheduled between Modi and Xi, and that the countries will most likely allow their militaries resolve the matter.
Earlier in the day, reports had suggested that officials of the National Security Agency had briefed Modi about the impasse between Indian and Chinese troops in Doklam.
On Wednesday, Beijing had accused New Delhi of “trampling” on the principles of the Panchsheel Pact, demanding that India “correct its mistakes” by pulling back its troops from Doklam immediately. The country also claimed that India was “misleading the public” by saying that Chinese troops were building a road in the Sikkim sector.
The Sikkim standoff
India and China have both maintained that troops from the other country transgressed into their territory. Bilateral ties have been strained since the Indian Army stopped China from constructing a road in the Doklam area of the Sikkim sector. New Delhi has made it clear that it will not allow China to construct a motorable road up to the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet tri-junction through the Doklam plateau.
The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through the Nathu La pass in Sikkim was also cancelled amid the continuing standoff.
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