S Jaishankar likely to visit China this weekend for the first time in 5 years: Report

Jaishankar will hold a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing, before traveling to Tianjin to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's council of foreign ministers on July 14-15, Bloomberg, quoting sources, said.

That the ministers are meeting separately from the summit underscores efforts by both sides to repair strained ties.

The two ministers are also expected to discuss a range of issues, including rare earth supplies to India, the Dalai Lama's succession, the recent India-Pakistan tensions, and the resumption of direct flights between the two countries, reports said.

Jaishankar's visit, if it happens, is the latest in a series of high-profile trips by Indian officials to China since tensions between the two sides began to deescalate late last year.

Last month, India's Defense Minister Rajnath Singh visited China to attend the SCO's defense ministers' meeting in Qingdao.

This meeting might also lay the groundwork for a potential visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the SCO leaders' summit this fall.

According to Chinese local media, PM Modi has been "warmly" invited by the Chinese ambassador to India, but New Delhi is yet to confirm his attendance.

Wang is also expected to travel to India in July to discuss border issues with India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, people familiar with the matter said.

Diplomatic and economic relations between the two countries reached an all-time low after June 2020 clashes between soldiers along the border, which left at least 20 Indian and an unknown number of Chinese troops dead.

In October, the two agreed to stabilize relations after Chinese President Xi Jinping and Modi met at the BRICS summit in Russia.

During Singh's visit last month, India refused to back a joint statement at the SCO meeting due to disagreements over including concerns on terrorism in the document.