Doval and Wang hold 25th round of India-China boundary talks in Beijing

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval held the 25th round of Special Representatives talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Tuesday.

The meeting focused on the boundary question along the 3,488 km disputed border and on broader bilateral relations. Doval is India’s designated Special Representative for the mechanism set up in 2003. Wang holds the same role for China and also serves as a Politburo member.

Earlier on Tuesday, Doval called on Chinese Vice President Han Zheng. The Indian Embassy in Beijing said the two discussed ways to strengthen peace and tranquillity in the border areas and to improve relations across economic, political and multilateral channels, in line with the consensus reached by the leaders of both countries.

Han was quoted by Xinhua as saying that China and India should view bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective and work together to implement the important consensus reached by their leaders.

The talks take place against the backdrop of a gradual normalisation of ties after the 2020 Galwan Valley clash. Both sides have held repeated military and diplomatic meetings to manage the Line of Actual Control. A Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination meeting on 6 August reviewed the situation along the LAC and discussed boundary delimitation, border management and trans-border cooperation.

Doval arrived in Beijing on Monday for the two-day visit at Wang’s invitation. The timing is significant. Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to travel to New Delhi for the BRICS summit on 12-13 September, his first visit to India in seven years. A possible meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Xi on the sidelines could add political weight to the current efforts at stabilisation.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the Special Representatives mechanism remains the main channel for negotiating the boundary dispute and an important platform for discussing wider issues. The two sides are expected to continue in-depth communication on the boundary question and to keep the border areas peaceful and tranquil.

India has previously pressed for a return to pre-2020 positions at key friction points and for clearer arrangements on buffer zones and patrolling rights. The current round is likely to review the October 2024 disengagement understandings and explore further confidence-building steps.

No joint statement had been issued by the time of writing. Officials on both sides have described the process as focused on institutionalising stability even while structural differences remain.