China will skip the upcoming Global Buddhist Summit in New Delhi, scheduled to be held on April 20 and 21, amid tensions with India over border issues.
Speaking to mediapersons, International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) Director-General Abhijit Halder said, “The Chinese are not coming. Invitations were sent… From Taiwan, they (two delegates) are coming.”
Halder was talking to journalists jointly with Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy. IBC is the host of the summit in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture.
According to sources, the Chinese have not confirmed their presence so far and they are likely not to attend the event.
Apart from this, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama is expected to attend the summit on Day 2 of the event. Sources added that Dalai Lama would be travelling to Delhi via Jammu on early Thursday morning and could grace his presence at the event.
“His Holiness the Dalai Lama will be coming to meet the Sangha leaders. He is a patron who has achieved a very high level of significance in the realm of Buddhism. Other patrons from other countries like Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Myanmar, etc. will also attend,” sources said.
Reddy said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to inaugurate the first Global Buddhist Summit on April 20 at the Ashok hotel in the national capital. The PM is expected to address the gathering at 10:30 am.
