Modi to visit China after 7 years amid strained ties with Trump admin

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit China later this month for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, marking his first trip to the country in more than seven years, a government source told Reuters.

The summit, to be held in the Chinese city of Tianjin beginning August 31, comes at a time when India’s relations with the United States have become increasingly tense.

President Donald Trump recently imposed steep tariffs on Indian goods and threatened further penalties over India’s continued imports of Russian oil.

The Ministry of External Affairs has not commented on the visit.

Modi last visited China in June 2018, but ties between the two Asian neighbours deteriorated sharply following a deadly border clash in 2020. However, bilateral relations have shown signs of improvement after Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia last October.

The SCO summit is expected to provide an opportunity for further dialogue between the two sides, particularly as India seeks to rebalance its diplomatic stance amid pressure from Washington.

Meanwhile, India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval is in Russia to discuss energy cooperation and defense-related matters, including pending deliveries of the S-400 air defense system. A possible visit to India by Russian President Vladimir Putin is also reportedly under discussion.

Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is expected to follow with a separate visit to Russia in the coming weeks.