Delhi: Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu will attend a crucial security summit meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers’ meeting scheduled to be held from Thursday to Friday in Delhi.
This is the first visit by a defence minister of China to India since a deadly clash between troops in 2020.
At least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers died. Both sides have had other confrontations since then, with the recent flare-up happening in December at Tawang in northeastern Arunachal Pradesh.
The root cause of the tussle between the countries is an ill-defined 3,440 km-long disputed border in the Himalayan region. Lakes, rivers and snowcaps along the frontier mean the line can shift, bringing soldiers face to face at many points, sparking a confrontation.
China’s defence ministry said that Li would address the conference in Delhi and “meet with the heads of delegations from relevant countries to communicate and exchange views on the problems of international and regional situation and defence and security cooperation”.
Local media has reported that Li and Indian defence minister Rajnath Singh may hold a bilateral meeting in Delhi. Both countries haven’t officially confirmed this.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
Li’s visit comes days after China and India concluded the 18th round of military negotiations to try and resolve the border dispute. India became the chair of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in 2023. The organisation was formed by China, Four Central Asian countries and Russia in 2001 as a countermeasure to limit the influence of Western alliances such as Nato. Pakistan and India joined the group in 2017.
The defence minister of Russia, Sergei Shoigu, will attend the meeting in Delhi, while Pakistan’s Khawaja Asif defence minister of Pakistan is expected to join virtually. Next week, Pakistan’s foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will attend a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation foreign ministers meeting in India – it’s the first visit by a main Pakistani government official to India in years.
