China, India to hold high-level border talks

China, India to hold first high-level border talks in 5 years, signaling a thaw in strained ties

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BEIJING:

China on Monday announced it would hold high-level talks later this week with India on their border disputes -- the first such discussions in five years, signalling a possible thaw in frosty ties.

Relations had been tense since a deadly military encounter in 2020 on the border between Tibet and India's Ladakh region, which left at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers dead.

In October, New Delhi said it had reached an agreement with Beijing on patrols in disputed areas along their common border.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will meet with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Wednesday in Beijing on the "China-India boundary question," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said in a statement.

The talks will be held in the framework of a negotiations mechanism created in 2003 to handle the thorny issue.

The last such meeting took place in December 2019, according to Indian media.