The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has firmly dismissed a Bloomberg report alleging that Chinese President Xi Jinping had sent a “secret” letter to Indian President Droupadi Murmu expressing concerns over US-India agreements. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, while addressing the media, clarified that no such communication had taken place and labelled the story as incorrect.

This denial comes against the backdrop of an important phase in India-China engagement marked by high-level exchanges, multilateral cooperation, and discussions on both global and bilateral issues. The MEA underscored that the India-China dialogue remains active and multifaceted, focusing on political trust, border stability, economic ties, and collaborative roles in global forums.

Recent developments highlight that Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended an invitation to President Xi for the BRICS Summit scheduled to be hosted by India in 2026. Xi Jinping responded positively, expressing China’s support for India’s upcoming BRICS Presidency. This exchange reflected a cooperative spirit further reinforced during the SCO Summit in Tianjin, where PM Modi voiced support for China’s SCO presidency.

The engagement continued a series of leadership-level dialogues, following Modi and Xi’s earlier meeting in 2024 at Kazan, Russia, on another BRICS platform. These recurring meetings underscore the commitment of both sides to maintain top-level political communication despite differences, projecting themselves as stakeholders in a multipolar world order.

India’s rising leadership role within BRICS has become a central element of its diplomacy with China. At the July 2025 BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, Prime Minister Modi articulated India’s vision of reshaping the grouping into “Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability” (BRICS). This vision placed emphasis on strengthening the Global South, a continuation of India’s G-20 chairmanship approach, where prioritising development and inclusivity was central.

The summit culminated in historic commitments, including the BRICS Leaders’ Framework Declaration on Climate Finance, which for the first time charted a collective goal to mobilise USD 300 billion annually by 2035 for climate investment under the UNFCCC and Paris frameworks.

Additionally, the grouping endorsed frameworks on global artificial intelligence governance, ensuring AI supports inclusive development, and an agenda for tackling socially determined diseases. This consolidation of agendas highlighted not only the deepening cohesion within BRICS but also India and China’s shared stakes in promoting Global South solidarity, where their cooperation remained central.

Strengthening bilateral relations was another major theme in the China-India engagements. During their meeting in Tianjin, both leaders reiterated the need for peace and stability on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as the foundation of broader bilateral cooperation.

Acknowledging the disengagement achieved in 2024 and the sustained calm since, both sides pledged further determination toward an equitable and mutually acceptable boundary settlement, building on the deliberations of their Special Representatives earlier in the year.

Modi and Xi reaffirmed that while India and China may differ on certain issues, those differences should not escalate into disputes. Instead, they endorsed the perception of each other as development partners whose progress was interlinked and whose cooperation was vital in shaping Asia’s role in the 21st century.

Economic and people-to-people exchanges also formed a significant component of the dialogue. Both sides acknowledged the stabilising role of their economies in global trade, noting the need for fresh political and strategic guidance to broaden investment opportunities, reduce trade imbalance, and expand market access.

In terms of societal connections, proposals such as resuming direct air links, restoring tourist visas, and facilitating the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra were discussed as practical measures to rekindle people-to-people exchanges, which had been adversely impacted in recent years. These soft connectivity measures are seen as complementary to the broader political and economic agenda.

The leaders also identified the importance of strategic autonomy, stressing that their bilateral relations should not be viewed through a third-country prism, particularly in the context of US-China tensions and evolving global alignments.

Both governments committed to coordinating positions in multilateral forums on shared concerns such as terrorism, climate financing, AI governance, and fair trade regulation. This reaffirmation of autonomy reflects both countries’ interest in ensuring their engagement remains independent, constructive, and free from external pressures.

Adding diplomatic weight, PM Modi met with Cai Qi, senior Chinese Politburo Standing Committee member, to convey his vision for deepened bilateral ties. Cai responded by reiterating China’s readiness to align with India on the vision outlined by the leaders, highlighting the emphasis placed at the highest levels of the Chinese establishment on continuing a positive trajectory.

The MEA’s dismissal of the Bloomberg report appears designed to prevent distractions from overshadowing the substantive progress in India-China exchanges across multilateral and bilateral dimensions. 

By underscoring the cooperative elements of Modi and Xi’s recent engagements, as well as India’s leadership role in BRICS and support for China’s SCO presidency, the MEA portrayed a relationship recovering from past strains and guided by pragmatism.

While trust deficits and differences on critical issues such as the boundary remain, the broader diplomatic direction points toward stabilising ties and collaborating where convergence exists, in line with both nations’ strategic autonomy and the imperatives of a multipolar world order.

Based On ANI Report