Ahead of BRICS Summit: Modi meets Xi, takes up China’s UN block on Lakhvi

Modi also conveyed to Xi concerns in India over the economic corridor China is building through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Late Wednesday, the Prime Minister tweeted: “Great meeting President Xi Jinping again. Our talks were comprehensive & a lot of topics came up for discussion.”

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Earlier, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar told reporters: “The issue of Lakhvi did come up. Our Prime Minister raised our concerns on the issue and it was discussed in some detail… They will be taken up in the course of further discussions between the two countries.”

He said the Prime Minister made Indian concerns “known very clearly”. “The Chinese side was impressed by the clarity with which he conveyed our concerns on the issue.” Officials from the two countries, he indicated, would pick up on what the leaders said at the meeting today.

India’s entry into the UNSC and NSG was among the topics discussed, he said.

China had pushed for a “technical hold” on Lakhvi, arguing that India had not provided “sufficient information” in support of its case. “Every country knows Lakhvi’s role… We have to see how to take this forward,” Jaishankar said.

He said the discussion also covered border issues where special representatives of both sides are engaged. The process, he said, would be accelerated.

The sanctions regime on al-Qaeda and associated individuals and entities was established by the United Nations Security Council resolution 1267.

Because the 1267 committee officially takes decisions by consensus, the five permanent members can exercise their veto by placing a proposal on “technical hold” — it delays the case for three months before it can come back before the committee.

The Indian government had taken up the issue of violation of the 1267 sanctions regime in respect of Lakhvi, only to be blocked by China. Lakhvi was released from Adiala prison on April 10 after the Lahore High Court dismissed his detention order.

The meeting between Modi and Xi was their fifth in a year. “Our fifth meeting in a year shows the depth of the India-China relationship,” MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup quoted Modi as telling Xi.