The two leaders held their first formal meeting in five years in Kazan, Russia, on the sidelines of the Brics summit after their nations reached an understanding over how to manage patrols along parts of their de facto border.

A meeting between the two leaders comes just two days after they settled a tense border dispute in the Himalayas. But experts said their long-term geopolitical rivalry would persist.

China on Thursday said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia's Kazan on Wednesday carries a 'great significance' as they reached an 'important common understandings' to improve the bilateral ties.