Wuhan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping had a 40-minute long one-on-one meeting in the central Chinese city of Wuhan on Friday. PM Modi tweeted late at night describing the engagement as "extensive and fruitful". He said the two of them deliberated on stronger India-China relations as well as other global issues.
Meanwhile, the delegation level talks that were slotted for 30-minutes extended to two hours even though it was earlier indicated that there will be no across the table talks. However, the delegations were much smaller comprising six officials on each side. The Indian side included Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and India's ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale.
The Prime Minister proposed that the informal summit be made a regular feature. He invited Xi to India next year for a similar summit.
Modi said since 40 percent of the global population is in India and China, the larger responsibility of global stability and peace lies with them. President Xi said that he hoped this informal summit will mark the beginning of a new chapter in Sino-India ties.
The two leaders will begin their day on Saturday with a lakeside walk along the mesmerizing East Lake. They will also experience a traditional Chinese tea ceremony.
This will be followed by a boat ride on the same lake and a lunch hosted by Xi for the Prime Minister before he takes off for New Delhi. With this the two leaders will have another three hours in an even more informal setting on Saturday to try an inch towards better mutual trust and understanding.
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