NEW DELHI: After Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping may not attend the G20 summit in Delhi. It is reported that Xi Jinping has decided to appoint Prime Minister Li Chiang to attend the summit. But there is no confirmation in this regard. According to reports, Xi Jinping is dissuaded from participating in the summit due to the re-escalation of the dispute with India over the border issue. Xi was invited by Prime Minister Modi during the BRICS summit. Top Chinese officials had also unofficially informed India that the President would attend the summit.

Along with the border issue, Xi is also thought to be pushing for the summit's absence due to fears of a show of US dominance at the summit. China believes that American supremacy will be demonstrated in the absence of Russian President Putin. The G20 will be held on September 9 and 10.

Putin called Narendra Modi on the phone and informed him that he would not be able to attend the summit. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will attend instead. Putin is believed to have been held back by fear of being arrested over the Ukraine war. An arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Putin is still outstanding.

India is worried that the summit will be tarnished if the Chinese president also skips the event. Currently, heads of state are expected to attend, except for Russia, Mexico and Oman. Therefore, even though Rahul Gandhi is intensifying the pressure, the central government has decided to maintain restraint on the border issue until the summit is over.