New Delhi: On the opening day of the two-day BRICS Summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping did not attend a dinner hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to people familiar with the arrangements. Also absent was Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed.
Xi arrived in Delhi on Saturday afternoon and took part in summit sessions and a bilateral meeting with Modi before skipping the evening event. Sources close to the Chinese delegation said the president was fatigued after a long flight and a demanding schedule, and that the time difference had left him exhausted, according to NDTV.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and several other BRICS leaders were present at the dinner, along with a large Indian contingent. Union ministers Amit Shah, Nirmala Sitharaman, Piyush Goyal, Ashwini Vaishnaw and Shivraj Singh Chouhan attended, as did Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and chief ministers Yogi Adityanath (Uttar Pradesh), Devendra Fadnavis (Maharashtra), Suvendu Adhikari (West Bengal) and Himanta Biswa Sarma (Assam). The ministers and chief ministers travelled in two buses from Parliament House to Bharat Mandapam in central Delhi, where the dinner was held.
The summit, bringing together leaders from 11 member countries and 10 partner nations, concludes today. Modi is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with leaders from seven countries.
On Saturday, Modi and Xi reviewed the state of India–China relations. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said both leaders welcomed “steady progress” since their last meeting in Tianjin in August 2025 and agreed that “differences should not become disputes”. The prime minister stressed that ties should be guided by “mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interest”, signalling a cautious but forward-looking approach as the two Asian giants navigate a complex relationship.
