![PM Modi Meets Chinese Prez Xi, Discusses Ways to Strengthen Bilateral Ties](https://cdn.umatno.info/news/66/ab/e3/66abe3055e828e6c5deb46a1d469c9a9-b.jpg)
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Buenos Aires: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G-20 summit here and discussed how to strenghten the bilateral ties between the two neighbours.
The two leaders have met twice after their informal summit in the Chinese city of Wuhan in April — once at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held in June in China's Qingdao and the second time at the BRICS summit in South Africa's Johannesburg in July.
Modi told Xi that he was looking forward to host him for an informal summit the next year.
"Today's meeting will be important in proving a direction in terms of strengthening our relations," Modi said. "Such initiatives are helpful in maintaining the momentum," he said, adding that there "have been two review meetings — in Qingdao and in Johannesburg (earlier)."
PM Modi thanked President Xi Jinping for taking out time for the meeting. After the meeting, the PMO tweeted that the two leaders held productive discussions.
"In his first of the many engagements today, PM Narendra Modi participated at BRICS Leaders' Informal Meeting on the margins of G20Summit. Reaffirmed India's commitment to globalisation and reformed multilateralism," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Ravish Kumar tweeted.
During the informal meeting on the margins of G-20 Summit, PM Modi assured UN chief Antonio Guterres, “India will play its ‘due and responsible’ role at the crucial climate change negotiations in Poland next week.”
The main topic of Prime Minister Modi's discussion with the UN chief was the forthcoming COP24 climate change meeting in Katowice, Poland from December 3, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said.
"We talked about mitigating climate change and India's efforts in this regard through initiatives like the International Solar Alliance," the prime minister tweeted.
Gokhale said secretary general Guterres said India plays a major role in climate change negotiations and acknowledged that Prime Minister Modi has taken a number of concrete steps towards addressing climate change.
"He (Modi) mentioned the International Solar Alliance.” The Secretary General also said that when he was in Delhi last month he had seen for himself the manner in which other campaigns the prime minister had led, including the Swachh Bharat campaign having an impact on the environment.
He hoped that India would bring together the various groups of developed countries and developing countries — those which have money those which need money — to come up with certain solution which would eventually feed into the climate change summit that the UN chief is planning in 2019, he said.
According to PMO sources, the UN Secretary General has reached out to Prime Minister Modi twice in the last two months. They said the meeting on Thursday signifies the importance that both leaders attach to the issue of climate change.
In his departure statement on Thursday, Modi said through the 10 years of its existence, the G-20 has strived to promote stable and sustainable global growth.
"This objective is of particular significance for developing countries and emerging economies such as India, which is today the fastest growing large economy in the world," he said.
Modi added that India's contribution to global economic growth and prosperity underlined its commitment to 'Building Consensus for Fair and Sustainable Development', which is the theme of the summit.
Modi further said, "I look forward to meeting leaders from other G-20 countries to review the work of G-20 in the last 10 years of its existence and chart the ways and means to meet the new and upcoming challenges of the coming decade."
The timing of the meetings are directly related to period of major global developments, PMO sources said.
They said it is indicative of India's growing diplomatic and economic profile in the world.
Modi arrived Argentina's capital of Buenos Aires on Thursday to attend the G-20 summit where he would discuss ways to meet the new and upcoming challenges of the coming decade with other world leaders, including US President Donald Trump.
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