Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit 2025, making this his first trip to the country in seven years.
#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Tianjin, China. He will attend the SCO Summit here.
(Video: ANI/DD) pic.twitter.com/dWnRHGlt95
— ANI (@ANI) August 30, 2025
This visit was extended by invitation from President Xi Jinping, a major indication of weakening tension between New Delhi and Beijing, which had been strained in light of the border skirmishes that broke out in 2020. Modi’s arrival points more to the willingness of India to reengage with its neighbor at a time when fast moving global power equations are shifting.
Trade Tensions with US
The same broad-brush backdrop of this visit has these factors. India’s continued imports of Russian oil during the entire Ukraine war had received censure from the United States.
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In retaliation, former United States President Donald Trump imposed new tariffs of an additional 25 percent on imports into India, which effectively raised the tariffs cumulatively to 50 percent. These trade ruffles, the fed-up India, directed efforts toward diversifying its strategic and economic engagements, thus cementing the need for forums like the SCO to pursue India’s foreign policy agenda.
What Is on the SCO Agenda?
The summit will be organized in Tianjin between August 31 and September 1. It will bring together Modi with leaders from beyond Eurasia. In addition to the welcome banquet and the leaders’ roundtable, these occasions will offer Modi an opportunity to repeat India’s clear and determined position against cross-border terrorism in view of the Pahalgam attack and consequent Operation Sindoor.
Counterterrorism, connectivity and regional stability remain top priorities for India in its cooperation through the SCO, which it has been a part of since 2017.
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Bilateral Engagement: Xi and Putin Feature Prominently
On the sidelines, Modi is expected to hold bilateral discussions with President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. These may prove crucial with China, perhaps useful in building confidence devoid of the past mistrust; with Russia, likely to be dominated by energy cooperation and strategic ties.
According to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, “a number of bilateral meetings are being finalised,” indicating that India is intent on harvesting every diplomatic opportunity at this crucial summit.
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