Chinese President Xi Jingping makes surprise visit to Tibetan city near India border

Chinese President Xi Jinping has made an unannounced visit to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), official media reported on Friday. Xi last visited the region in 2011 when he was China's vice president.

The visit started from Nyingchi close to the Sino-India border in Arunachal Pradesh. After landing in Nyingchi on Wednesday, Xi visited Lhasa on Thursday, returning to the Tibetan capital after more than a decade.

Xi’s visit to Nyingchi comes a month after China inaugurated its first electric train service in Tibet between the capital Lhasa and Nyingchi city

In video footage shared on Chinese social media, Communist Party of China (CPC) general secretary Xi was seen greeting residents in Nyingchi with the Tibetan expression for good luck “Tashi Delek”.

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Xi was also seen addressing people, telling them that not a single ethnic group should be left behind in the efforts to fully build a modern socialist China.