Speculation Swirls Over Xi Jinping’s Health After Brief BRICS Appearance
President Xi Jinping left the BRICS summit in Delhi after roughly 24 hours and returned to China, remaining out of public view. During the opening address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paused to ask the translator, “Is it okay?” after aides attended to Xi, and Chinese journalists later said the pause was due to a malfunctioning translation earpiece. An unregistered political group’s chair posted on X alleging that Xi suffered a severe ischemic stroke and was taken to Beijing 301 Hospital for emergency care.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Xi’s exit came after successfully concluding his participation. Commentators have suggested the incident could become a political weapon and may raise doubts about the upcoming September meeting with the United States.
How this was covered
- Left-leaning outlets covered this 23h later
Why it matters
Rumors about the health of China’s top leader can shape public perception of the country’s stability and influence how other nations engage with it.
How this story developed
- Sep 10 Bangladesh Rejects Invitation for Prime Minister to Attend BRICS Outreach Session
- Sep 11 BRICS expanded to eleven member countries.
- Sep 12 The 18th BRICS summit opened in New Delhi with India presiding and leaders including Xi Jinping arriving for the meeting.
- Sep 12 Modi called for immediate UN Security Council reform and urged the Global South to become a rule‑shaper at the summit's opening.
- Sep 12 Chinese President Xi Jinping called on BRICS nations at the New Delhi summit to support peace initiatives in the Middle East, saying the war harms the international community.
- Sep 12 The two leaders met on the margins of the BRICS Summit. Vietnam is a partner country in the BRICS grouping.
- Sep 12 Leaders adopted the Delhi Declaration and Modi proposed a continuity mechanism to implement summit outcomes.
- Sep 13 Leaders adopted a 140‑point New Delhi Declaration covering security, trade, climate and technology issues.
- Sep 13 Day 2 of the summit focused on PM Modi’s four‑pillar BRICS agenda, early‑warning and disaster systems, AI, digital agriculture, supply chains and startups.
- Sep 13 President Xi outlined proposals for a BRICS AI Open Source Zone and a China‑hosted service‑trade forum.
- Sep 16 At the BRICS summit in New Delhi, Narendra Modi halted his opening remarks to ask if President Xi Jinping was okay, prompting online rumours about the Chinese leader's health.
- Sep 19 India unveiled a BRICS Logistics Supply Chain Cooperation Framework during the summit.
- Sep 26 No date has been set for the planned New Delhi visit.
- Sep 27 A chair of an unregistered political group posted on X alleging that Xi suffered a severe ischemic stroke and was taken to Beijing 301 Hospital.
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