China has officially confirmed that President Xi Jinping will visit India to attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12 and 13, 2026. The announcement ends weeks of uncertainty over Beijing’s representation at the summit and sets the stage for a closely watched engagement between India and China. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Xi will travel to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Xi’s upcoming visit will be his first trip to India in nearly seven years. His last visit was in October 2019, when he met Prime Minister Modi for the second informal India-China summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai. Relations between the two countries subsequently came under severe strain following the 2020 military confrontation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.
The confirmation comes at a time when New Delhi and Beijing have been working to gradually stabilise bilateral relations. Both sides have taken steps to maintain dialogue on the boundary question and other areas of bilateral engagement. The two governments have also been seeking to improve diplomatic and economic interaction while continuing discussions over unresolved border issues.
Xi’s presence at the BRICS summit is expected to give added importance to India-China engagement on the sidelines of the two-day gathering. Prime Minister Modi and President Xi are expected to discuss the broader bilateral relationship, with border stability remaining an important element of the relationship between the two countries. Recent diplomatic engagement has included discussions between senior Indian and Chinese officials on the boundary issue and mechanisms for maintaining peace along the border.
India is hosting the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi as the current chair of the grouping. The summit is expected to bring together leaders of the expanded BRICS grouping to discuss economic cooperation, global governance, trade, financial cooperation, energy security, technology and other international issues. Xi’s participation gives the summit additional diplomatic weight, particularly as India seeks to strengthen cooperation among major emerging economies.
The Chinese president’s visit also comes amid wider efforts by India to strengthen its engagement with major global powers through the BRICS platform. Russian President Vladimir Putin is also scheduled to attend the summit, making the New Delhi gathering an important diplomatic event for India.
For New Delhi, Xi’s visit is significant not only because of China’s role in BRICS but also because it provides another opportunity to assess the direction of India-China relations. While differences over the boundary remain unresolved, both countries have shown interest in maintaining dialogue and preventing bilateral disagreements from escalating.
The confirmation of Xi Jinping’s India visit therefore places India-China relations among the key issues to watch during the BRICS Summit. His participation is expected to draw considerable international attention as New Delhi hosts the grouping on September 12-13 and seeks to advance cooperation on economic, technological and global governance issues.