Border issues should not be the defining factor in China-India ties, Chinese President Xi Jinping told visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday, saying the relationship required a “strategic and long-term perspective”.

Meeting on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin, Xi also told Modi that the two countries could begood neighbours and play a key part in the Global South, according to state news agency Xinhua.

This is Modi’s first trip to China in seven years and it comes at a pivotal moment.

Both countries are working to resolve long-standing disputes and find common ground as each feels strains in their relationship with the United States.

Beijing is also using the summit as an opportunity to showcase its leadership and build solidarity with the Global South.