G20 Summit: PM Modi to be in Germany from July 6-8; no plans to meet Chinese President Xi to resolve 'Sikkim Standoff'

After a successful Israel trip, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will set off for three-day Germany visit to attend much anticipated G20 Summit in Hamburg on Thursday night, an official said. 

PM Modi's G20 summit visit comes in the backdrop of rising tension between India and China over the dispute on Sikkim border. However, the two leaders are not expected to meet during the summit to settle the issue. 

Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday confirmed that PM Modi will hold bilateral meetings on sidelines of G20 Summit with Argentina, Canada, Italy, Japan, Mexico, ROK, UK and Vietnam and that there was no change in his schedule, so far.

Apart from G20 Summit, PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping will also attend the BRICS summit, but it is quite unlikely that the two Asiatic powers will bring up the bilateral issue on an international platform. 

Earlier in the day, China also said the "atmosphere" was "not right" for a bilateral meeting between the Indian Prime Minister and Chinese President in Germany.

Suggested read: 'Atmosphere not right' for Xi Jinping-Modi meet in G-20 Summit, says China

"The atmosphere is not right for a bilateral meeting between President Xi and Prime Minister Modi," a Chinese foreign ministry official said ahead of the G20 summit in the German city of Hamburg from Friday.

China and India have been engaged in a stand-off in the Dokalam area near the Bhutan tri-junction region for the past 19 days after a Chinese army's construction party attempted to build a road. Doka La is the Indian name for the region which Bhutan recognises as Dokalam, while China claims it as part of its Donglang region.

Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang expressed hope that "India can immediately withdraw the border troops to the Indian side of the boundary to uphold peaceful tranquillity of the China and India border areas".

"I think this is the pre-condition for any meaningful peace talks between the two sides," he told a media briefing here when asked about the meeting between Modi and Xi on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

China's state-run media on Wednesday had quoted Chinese analysts as saying that Beijing would be forced to use a"military way" to end the standoff in the Sikkim sector ifIndia refuses to listen to the "historical lessons" being offered by it. 

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