The rebuilding of India-China ties coincides with friction between New Delhi and Washington after Donald Trump imposed steep tariffs on India. The focus will be on the outcome of the talks between Modi and Xi Jinping today.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met for bilateral talks Sunday in the port city of Tianjin, as India and China look to reset strained ties amid Donald Trump’s tariff offensive that has soured Washington’s ties with both New Delhi and Beijing.
The 40-minute closed-door meeting comes on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. PM Modi is also scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tianjin, the first huddle between the two leaders since the US doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent over New Delhi’s refusal to stop buying Russian oil.
Seven years have passed since PM Modi last set foot in China. His last trip, to Wuhan in 2018, followed the tense Doklam standoff. This time, the focus is on economic and strategic alignment as the two Asian powers navigate the turbulence caused by the US President’s tariff barrage.
On Sunday, PM Modi and the Chinese President will hold two bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the SCO summit. The next day, he will sit down for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
For Modi, the spectacle of him standing alongside Xi and Putin at the summit will send a pointed message to Trump.
Especially since in recent weeks, Trump and his officials have intensified their attacks on India over its purchase of Russian oil amid the war in Ukraine. White House adviser Peter Navarro went as far as to claim that the Ukraine conflict was essentially “Modi’s war”.
