Xi Jinping Unlikely to Attend G20 Summit in India
According to sources familiar with the situation in India and China, Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to miss the upcoming G20 leaders’ summit in India.
Reuters reported that two Indian officials, including a diplomat stationed in China and another official from a different G20 nation, have indicated that Premier Li Qiang is expected to attend the G20 summit in New Delhi on September 9-10 as a representative of Beijing.
The G20 summit was seen as a potential opportunity for Chinese President Xi Jinping to engage with US President Joe Biden, who has already confirmed his participation. The event was considered significant as both major powers aimed to mend their relations strained by various trade and geopolitical conflicts.
However, Xi’s attendance is still uncertain, as he has not yet made a final decision. If he does not attend, it would be a major setback for the summit and for the efforts to improve relations between China and the United States.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has informed India that he will not be attending the G20 summit in New Delhi in person. Instead, he will send Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as his representative.
A senior government official from India, the host country of the G20 summit, told Reuters that they are aware that Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will be attending the summit in place of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
According to two foreign diplomats in China and a government representative from another G20 nation, it is likely that Xi Jinping will not be making the trip to the summit due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors.
Reuters reported that two sources within China, who said they received the information from Chinese officials, said they did not know the specific reason why Xi Jinping might not attend the summit.
Expectations of a potential meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden have been raised by a series of visits to Beijing by high-ranking US officials in recent months. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s recent visit has particularly contributed to this anticipation.
Additionally, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Meeting, which is scheduled to take place in San Francisco from November 12 to 18, has been proposed as another forum for in-person talks between the two leaders.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, who won an unprecedented third term in October 2022, has made few international trips since China relaxed its strict COVID-19 border controls earlier this year.
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Despite having limited international travel since China relaxed its strict COVID-19 border controls, Xi Jinping attended the BRICS summit in South Africa last week. The BRICS summit is an annual meeting of leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
In the lead-up to the G20 summit, there have been disagreements between China and India at a series of ministerial meetings in India. Notably, Russia and China have jointly resisted endorsing collective statements that condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Amidst this backdrop, Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. They discussed ways to improve relations between their two countries, which have been strained since a 2020 border clash that killed 24 Indian soldiers.
