Chinese President Xi Jinping has appointed senior diplomat Xu Feihong as the new Ambassador to India after an unusually long delay of 18 months amid frozen relations between the two countries over the eastern Ladakh military standoff.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has appointed senior diplomat Xu Feihong as the new Ambassador to India after an unusually long delay of 18 months amid frozen relations between the two countries over the eastern Ladakh military standoff.

While there is no official announcement in Beijing yet, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has confirmed to PTI that Mr. Xu, former Ambassador to Afghanistan and Romania, has been appointed as China’s new envoy in India.

Mr. Xu, 60, is expected to travel to New Delhi soon to take over his new posting.

He will succeed veteran Chinese diplomat Sun Weidong who completed his tenure in India in October 2022.

Mr. Sun, who was China’s envoy to Pakistan before his India stint, is currently the Vice Foreign Minister overseeing China’s South Asia policy.

Mr. Xu’s appointment which coincides with the ongoing Lok Sabha elections comes amid protracted military and diplomatic negotiations between Beijing and New Delhi to resolve the prolonged military standoff.

Relations between the two countries were frozen except for trade ever since the eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong Tso (lake) area. The eastern Ladakh standoff has resulted in a freeze of bilateral ties.

The two sides have so far held 21 rounds of corps commanders-level talks to resolve the standoff.

According to the Chinese military, the two sides so far agreed to disengage from four points, namely the Galwan Valley, the Pangong Lake, Hot Springs, and Jianan Daban (Gogra).

India is pressing the People’s Liberation Army to disengage from the Depsang and Demchok areas, maintaining that there cannot be restoration of normalcy in its relations with China as long as the state of the borders remains abnormal.

This handout photo released by Sri Lankan Prime Minister’s Office on March 27, 2024 shows Sri Lanka’s PM Dinesh Gunawardena (left) with Chinese President Xi Jinping, before a meeting in Beijing.
| Photo Credit: AFP

China has said it would continue to support Sri Lanka, as the crisis-hit island nation’s Prime Minister on March 30 wrapped up a visit to Beijing to try to finalise a debt restructuring deal.

Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena arrived in China on Monday for a visit that included meeting President Xi Jinping and an appearance at the Boao Forum, a high-profile international meeting.

Sri Lanka’s years-long economic crisis was high on the agenda during Mr. Gunawardena’s trip, with China accounting for around 10% of the South Asian country’s total foreign debt.

China is willing to “continue supporting its financial institutions to actively negotiate with Sri Lanka, maintain friendly communication with other creditors, play a positive role in the International Monetary Fund, assist Sri Lanka in financial relief,” Beijing’s Foreign Ministry said in the Chinese version of a joint bilateral statement released on March 29.

The two sides agreed to “make every effort to promote the Port City Colombo and Hambantota Development Project, turning them into flagship projects of the Sino-Sri Lankan joint construction of the ‘Belt and Road'”, the statement said, referring to Xi’s massive Belt and Road global infrastructure initiative.

The southern sea port of Hambantota was considered among the white-elephant projects launched by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, who ruled the country for a decade until 2015.

Rajapaksa borrowed heavily from China for projects that many criticised as a debt trap that led to the worst economic crisis in Sri Lanka’s history. Unable to repay a huge loan taken from China in 2017 to build Hambantota port, Sri Lanka handed it over to the state-owned China Merchants Group for $1.12 billion on a 99-year lease.

Sri Lanka defaulted on its $46 billion external debt in April 2022 after it ran out of foreign exchange to finance even essential imports such as food, fuel and medicine. It secured a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout last year, with the programme conditional on a debt deal that satisfies foreign creditors.

China had agreed “in principle” to restructure Sri Lanka’s debt in December, but neither Colombo nor Beijing had given details and the two are yet to finalise an agreement. Sri Lanka’s government said in January that a foreign debt restructure would be finalised by the beginning of April.

Dinesh Gunawardena. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena arrived at Beijing on March 25 for a six-day official visit during which he will hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang on ways to further deepen bilateral ties.

“Mr. Gunawardena was received on his arrival by Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister and former Ambassador to India Sun Weidong,” Chinese official media reported.

This will be the first visit by a Sri Lankan leader to Beijing after Colombo put a moratorium on recurring visits by Chinese research ships to Hambantota port, reportedly due to India’s security concerns. Colombo’s move had drawn angry reactions from China.

Earlier this month, however, Sri Lanka said it would allow foreign offshore research ships for replenishments at its ports despite a one-year ban on such vessels.

Some of China’s infrastructure investments in Sri Lanka drew global concerns over Beijing’s debt diplomacy especially after China took over Hambantota port on a 99-year debt swap.

Mr. Gunawardena’s visit also comes days after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reached a staff-level agreement with Sri Lanka for the next phase that would enable it access to $337 million from the nearly $3 billion bailout approved in 2023 for the cash-strapped country.

In 2022, Sri Lanka announced a default on over $51 billion foreign loans, following which India pitched in with about $4 billion in assistance to enable the island nation to recover from a deep economic crisis.

According to Sri Lanka’s official data, China tops the list of its creditors with 43% followed by Japan with 23% and India with 15%.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on November 1 he will raise the plight of a detained democracy blogger with Chinese leaders during a state visit to China.

Mr. Albanese said he had approved a draft letter to the sons of Yang Hengjun, who has been detained in China since 2019.

“We’re very sympathetic and understand the concerns that they would have for their father and for this Australian who has been detained now for a long period of time,” Mr. Albanese told reporters.

The sons have made public a letter to Mr. Albanese, dated October 28, that said there was a “narrow window of opportunity” before Mr. Albanese left for China to secure their father’s freedom.

“We ask that you make it clear that it is not possible to stabilise the bilateral relationship with a government that is holding an Australian citizen just a few kilometres south of where you will be hosted,” the brothers added, referring to Beijing.

They said they had just last week received the first letter Yang had been allowed to send from detention. Yang wrote: “I’m sick, I’m weak, I’m dying.” Yang, who once worked for China’s Ministry of State Security, is still awaiting a verdict from his closed-door trial on espionage charges in May 2021.

His sons are 24 and 31 years old. Family friend Feng Chongyi said the sons had not been publicly identified because they feared Chinese retaliation for their father’s activities. Feng said Mr. Albanese becoming the first Australian Prime Minister in seven years to visit China created an opportunity for Yang.

“It’s not the last chance, but it’s the best chance,” Feng said. “The visit symbolises the complete normalisation of relations between the two countries.” Mr. Albanese’s visit that begins on Saturday is a sign that bilateral relations have improved since his centre-left government was elected last year following nine years of conservative rule.

Mr. Albanese will meet with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing and attend the China International Import Expo in Shanghai during the three-day visit.

Mr. Albanese raised the plights of Yang and another detained Australian, journalist Cheng Lei, in his first meeting with Xi on the sidelines of a Group of 20 summit in Indonesia a year ago. Cheng was deported last month in what many saw as Beijing clearing the way for Mr. Albanese’s visit.

Yang’s sons wrote that said they had been “inspired by the wonderful news” of Cheng’s release. They hoped Australian authorities could “achieve a second miracle by saving our father”. Asked about Cheng’s case, Mr. Albanese told reporters: “Every case is … different.”

Chinese Vice-President Han Zheng. File
| Photo Credit: AP

China is sending Vice-President Han Zheng to the U.N. General Assembly’s annual high-level debate, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on September 15, suggesting that the country’s most senior diplomat Wang Yi will not attend.

This year’s gathering of world leaders at United Nations headquarters in New York starts on Monday with a sustainability summit. The weeklong general debate gets under way on Tuesday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has not attended the U.N. session in person for several years. He participated via video-conference during the first two years of the coronavirus pandemic.

Wang Yi attended last year and generally represented China at the U.N. Wang is the head of the foreign affairs committee of China’s Communist Party. He was not mentioned in the Ministry’s announcement.

Han is a past member of the Politburo Standing Committee, an elite group of leaders within the party. He retired from that position but assumed the position of Vice-President in March.

Han’s continued political career parallels the one of Wang Qishan, who played an influential role in the past several years in managing the tense U.S.-China relationship. Wang led the Communist Party’s disciplinary body and was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee. He retired at the end of 2017 but was brought back to serve as Vice-President in 2018.

The absence of Beijing’s top leader at the General Assembly may not be as conspicuous as Xi not attending the Group of 20 summit that took place in India earlier this month.

The British government announced in August that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would not attend the upcoming U.N. session. French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin also do not plan to be there.

U.S. President Joe Biden (left) with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. File
| Photo Credit: AP

The “health of democracy” is an important issue for the India-U.S. relationship, said senior U.S. White House officials, adding that U.S. President Joe Biden raised these issues in every meeting he has held with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Briefing the media after the bilateral meeting on Friday night (September 8) between PM Modi and President Biden, the officials made a reference to the Karnataka State elections, calling Mr. Modi’s public congratulations to the Congress party for its victory in the State, which the ruling BJP lost in May, a “positive indicator” for democracy. 

They said India is “disappointed” that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping did not attend the G20 summit, said senior U.S. White House officials, adding that there was “clear appreciation” that U.S. President Joe Biden travelled to India for it.

On chances for a joint declaration being forged at the end of the G20 summit, the officials said there had been some forward movement, particularly on climate issues in the draft communique, but that the U.S. would remain “purposeful determined and resolute” on the language over Ukraine. As The Hindu had reported on September 8, officials and diplomats said the language on all non-geopolitical issues had been cleared, but Ukraine remains a sticking point with the U.S. and allies ranged on one side and Russia and China on the other. 

“There was a clear appreciation on the part of India that President Biden is here, and that he made the trip,” said Kurt Campbell, the National Security Council’s Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, adding that “I think it is a disappointment for India that both Russia and China (Presidents) are not here”. 

Highlighting the India-U.S.-Saudi Arabia-India infrastructure corridor which now includes the European Union, that is expected to be announced, Mr. Campbell said that talks are still ongoing with all the parties present in Delhi, and this would be a “major breakthrough that would help fundamental delays with respect to infrastructure and communications, from India with the Middle East (West Asia) and then on to Europe. 

Worldview with Suhasini Haidar | PM Modi in US | A major leap forward for India-US ties?

The officials also faced several questions from the U.S. White House Press Corps members on the lack of access for journalists in the press pool to the bilateral meeting and the main G20 venue. Mr. Campbell said that this had been raised with India, and stressed that despite India’s objections, the U.S. had held a press interaction with PM Modi and President Biden during the state visit in Washington in June. 

“I do want to just underscore for you that in every meeting that I’ve been in, the President is very clear about the importance of the health of democracy. He doesn’t do this in such a way that suggests that one country is lecturing to another but rather that we all face shared challenges, and we think it’s important that we’re constantly asking the hard questions about our democracy.” When pressed on whether U.S. concerns over India have led to any “change” in the Modi government, Rear Admiral Eileen Laubacher, the NSC Senior Director for South Asia, pointing to recent Karnataka elections, said that Mr. Modi had congratulated the Congress party on the results, although she said the U.S. would not like to ascribe this to its influence.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes U.S. President Joe Biden for the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, Delhi, on September 9, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Dan Kitwood

The “health of democracy” is an important issue for the India-U.S. relationship, said senior U.S. White House officials, adding that U.S. President Joe Biden raised these issues in every meeting he has held with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Briefing the media after the bilateral meeting on Friday night (September 8) between PM Modi and President Biden, the officials made a reference to the Karnataka State elections, calling Mr. Modi’s public congratulations to the Congress party for its victory in the State, which the ruling BJP lost in May, a “positive indicator” for democracy. 

They said India is “disappointed” that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping did not attend the G20 summit, said senior U.S. White House officials, adding that there was “clear appreciation” that U.S. President Joe Biden travelled to India for it.

G-20 Summit 2023 in New Delhi Live Updates | September 9

On chances for a joint declaration being forged at the end of the G20 summit, the officials said there had been some forward movement, particularly on climate issues in the draft communique, but that the U.S. would remain “purposeful determined and resolute” on the language over Ukraine. As The Hindu had reported on September 8, officials and diplomats said the language on all non-geopolitical issues had been cleared, but Ukraine remains a sticking point with the U.S. and allies ranged on one side and Russia and China on the other. 

“There was a clear appreciation on the part of India that President Biden is here, and that he made the trip,” said Kurt Campbell, the National Security Council’s Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific, adding that “I think it is a disappointment for India that both Russia and China (Presidents) are not here”. 

Highlighting the India-U.S.-Saudi Arabia-India infrastructure corridor which now includes the European Union, that is expected to be announced, Mr. Campbell said that talks are still ongoing with all the parties present in Delhi, and this would be a “major breakthrough that would help fundamental delays with respect to infrastructure and communications, from India with the Middle East (West Asia) and then on to Europe. 

Worldview with Suhasini Haidar | PM Modi in US | A major leap forward for India-US ties?

The officials also faced several questions from the U.S. White House Press Corps members on the lack of access for journalists in the press pool to the bilateral meeting and the main G20 venue. Mr. Campbell said that this had been raised with India, and stressed that despite India’s objections, the U.S. had held a press interaction with PM Modi and President Biden during the state visit in Washington in June. 

“I do want to just underscore for you that in every meeting that I’ve been in, the President is very clear about the importance of the health of democracy. He doesn’t do this in such a way that suggests that one country is lecturing to another but rather that we all face shared challenges, and we think it’s important that we’re constantly asking the hard questions about our democracy.” When pressed on whether U.S. concerns over India have led to any “change” in the Modi government, Rear Admiral Eileen Laubacher, the NSC Senior Director for South Asia, pointing to recent Karnataka elections, said that Mr. Modi had congratulated the Congress party on the results, although she said the U.S. would not like to ascribe this to its influence.

File image for representation.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

With Chinese President Xi Jinping skipping a G-20 summit for the first time, Beijing is sending “deliberate signals” to India and the West by essentially downgrading its involvement in a key international forum, according to current and former officials and people familiar with Beijing’s thinking.

Missing the summit, they said, conveys China’s displeasure both with the current state of bilateral ties with India — and New Delhi’s stand that normalcy in broader ties is not possible without a restoration of peace on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) — and with what Beijing sees as a “politicisation” of the G-20, which it believes should be limited to economic issues and not involve itself with issues such as the war in Ukraine.

‘Surprising,’ says Ashok Kantha

Beijing offered no reason on Monday for Mr. Xi’s decision to skip the summit. The decision was “surprising”, noted former Indian Ambassador to China Ashok Kantha, considering Mr. Xi attended all previous G-20 summits (he attended the 2021 Rome summit virtually) and as recently as August 24 travelled to South Africa for the BRICS summit.  Health reasons also do not appear to be a factor, with Mr. Xi in the past week meeting with the visiting President of Benin in Beijing and also addressing by video a key conference on trade in services.

“So one presumes it is a deliberate signal both in the bilateral context, where there is unhappiness about the present state of relations, and a second aspect is a lack of comfort for China with the G-20 as a platform,” Mr. Kantha said. “They are sending out signals that they see things [with India] as not good and that they are not going to go the extra mile to retrieve the situation.”

Following an informal conversation between Mr. Modi and Mr. Xi in South Africa, both sides put out differing readouts over what was said, and then subsequently exchanged sharp barbs over China’s issuing of a new “standard map” for 2023 on August 28. While the timing, five days after the meeting between the leaders, was likely coincidental given the release of the map during what appeared to be a long-planned “map awareness publicity week” campaign in China by the Ministry of Natural Resources, it was seen by New Delhi as further complicating already sensitive relations amid an unresolved border crisis.

Skipping the summit also reflects China’s unease with the G-20 as a platform, and a stark contrast to its investing in other fora such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

People familiar with Beijing’s thinking suggest Mr. Xi would have been “very likely present in Delhi” if India hosted the SCO summit in person given the importance accorded by Beijing to the China and Russia-backed grouping. India decided to host the summit virtually, although it had initially planned for a physical summit in New Delhi.

“In BRICS, Xi was more comfortable as China was more in a position to influence the agenda and outcomes,” Mr. Kantha added. “At the G-20, there is much greater pressure on China, and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin being absent means China will come under pressure. The Chinese feel they are more in control at the BRICS and SCO.”

Second-ranked leader and Premier Li Qiang will attend the Delhi G-20 summit. This is a deviation from standard Chinese protocol, with a clear division of responsibility in the Chinese system when it comes to international meetings. The President as Head of State (HoS) usually attends the G-20 and APEC Summit. Mr. Xi is expected to travel to the U.S. in November for the latter. The Premier usually attends the East Asia Summit, which Mr. Li is participating in this week in Indonesia before travelling to New Delhi. Both attend the SCO where there are separate HoS and Head of Government meetings.

“That practice is maintained very clearly and they don’t ordinarily deviate from it,” Mr. Kantha noted. “So this is not a routine decision, and it is clearly well thought out.”