Chinese President Xi Jinping and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed on Monday to maintain peace at the border and amicably resolve its boundary dispute, ahead of the 6^th BRICS summit to be jointly attended by both leaders in Fortaleza, Brazil.

India's foreign ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said that both leaders talked as "partners" and laid out their concerns in clear terms.

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Modi stressed the importance of reaching an amicable solution in the border dispute that would set an example for other nations on how to peacefully resolve disputes.

Xi pointed out the need for "negotiated solutions" on the border and proposed the two sides manage and control their differences with a positive and forward-looking outlook.

He also called for a deeper integration of development strategies that would broaden exchanges in the cultural and economic fields.

The talks also touched on expansion of bilateral trade.

Modi urged for greater Chinese investment citing opportunities for industrial investment and infrastructure cooperation as well as the need to balance the trade deficit.

Xi acknowledged the deficit and discussed sustainable ways to reduce them such as increasing trade and services exports from India, as well as boosting tourism.

Despite the talks ending on a positive note, many of Modi's allies are wary of trusting China, arguing that the latter's overtures may hide an underlying motive.

Modi's election campaign this year vowed to take a stricter approach in protecting its boundaries and warned Beijing to let go of its "territorial mindset" when its military had crossed into India's territories last year.

The two countries disagree over the demarcation of several territories mostly in the Chinese-controlled Aksai Chin and the Arunachal Pradesh for more than five decades. Although an agreement was signed in 1996, clashes have sparked from time to time, the latest leading to a three-week standoff last year.

Tagsborder dispute, economic ties, bilateral ties, Syed Akbaruddin, Aksai Chin, Arunachal Pradesh