PM Modi to Visit China for SCO Summit – First Trip Since 2020 Galwan Clash
PM Modi to visit China for the SCO Summit from Aug 31–Sept 1, marking his first trip since the 2020 Galwan clash amid renewed regional dialogue.
PM Modi to attend the SCO Summit in Tianjin, China—his first visit since the 2020 Galwan clash; bilateral talks with Xi Jinping likely.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make his first trip to China since the 2020 conflict in the Galwan Valley when he attends the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin from August 31 to September 1. An important step in the slow mending of tense India-China relations is the high-profile visit.
In October 2024, PM Modi met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the BRICS Summit in Kazan, but his most recent trip to China was in 2019. Global geopolitical changes, such as President Donald Trump's increased tariffs on the US and growing criticism of India's energy trade with Russia, coincide with his most recent visit. According to strategic analysts, Modi's visit to China is a component of a larger reorientation of India's foreign policy.
Additionally, the visit coincides with tensions related to China's ongoing support of Pakistan and the recent hostility that followed the 26-person terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, on April 22. In a widely seen move supported by Pakistan, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh famously refused to support a joint SCO statement in June that focused on turmoil in Balochistan rather than the Pahalgam incident.
China did, however, openly denounce the Pahalgam incident in July following the US's designation of The Resistance Front, a front for the Pakistan-based terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba, as a foreign terrorist organisation. Beijing's Foreign Ministry emphasised its opposition to all types of terrorism and urged more regional cooperation in order to preserve security.
Modi is anticipated to participate in multilateral talks at the SCO Summit on issues like economic cooperation, regional stability, and terrorism. Additionally probable are bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The 2024 Kazan encounter between Modi and Xi had already cleared the path for reducing border tensions, with events like the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra's restart aiding in the reconstruction of diplomatic ties.
The SCO is a significant Eurasian political and security alliance with ten members: China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. It was established in 2001. It is anticipated that the forthcoming summit will be very important in determining the future security and diplomatic environment of the area.
