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With Prime Minister Narendra Modi expected to travel to Tianjin, China, later this month for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, diplomatic momentum is building between India and China to resolve the border tensions.
The summit, scheduled for August 31 to September 1, could also see a significant bilateral meeting between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, marking a potential breakthrough after years of strained ties.
Sources familiar with the developments say both sides are “advancing dialogue” on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) issue, aiming to create a more stable environment ahead of the high-level visit. While no formal announcements have been made, a series of high-level engagements suggests a concerted push to resolve key points of friction before Modi’s arrival.
Wang Yi to Visit Delhi Ahead of Summit
In a significant move, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is also a top official in the Communist Party’s Politburo, is expected to visit New Delhi on August 18 for talks with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. The focus of the visit will be the border disengagement process in Eastern Ladakh, where both countries have been locked in a military standoff since 2020.
It would be the most senior Chinese visit to India in over a year and is seen as a critical step towards setting the stage for a possible Modi-Xi bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the SCO.
PM Modi’s Visit: First to China Since 2018
The Prime Minister’s upcoming visit to China will mark his first trip to the country in seven years, his last visit was in 2018. The military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh began in May 2020 due to Chinese incursions. The disengagement process was completed in November 2024, just days after a meeting in Kazan.
Modi’s presence at the SCO Summit will come alongside other key leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin. While the bilateral meeting with Xi Jinping has not yet been confirmed, officials have not ruled it out, describing it as “under consideration.”
Sources also indicate that Modi may first travel to Japan on August 30 before heading to China, though this leg of the visit is still being finalised.
The visit comes amid an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape, with India navigating deepening ties with Russia and efforts to maintain strategic autonomy in the face of US. pressure. President Donald Trump has imposed steep 50% tariffs on Indian goods and warned of possible sanctions over India’s continued oil trade with Russia.
Indian officials, however, have pushed back against this narrative, stating that the series of diplomatic engagements – with Russia, China, and Japan – are part of long-planned strategic dialogues and not a reaction to Washington’s warnings.
Strategic Coordination in Play
NSA Ajit Doval is currently in Moscow for his annual meeting with Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, a visit seen as part of preparations for President Putin’s much-anticipated trip to India, which has been repeatedly postponed since the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict.
Earlier this year, both Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar attended SCO Ministerial meetings, underscoring India’s continued engagement with the Eurasian security bloc.
At the upcoming summit, Modi is expected to focus on regional security, counterterrorism cooperation, energy partnerships, and the promotion of multilateralism. However, the optics and substance of a possible meeting with Xi, and the state of the India-China relationship, are likely to dominate headlines.
As the dates approach, formal announcements from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Chinese government are expected. The Wang-Doval talks on August 18 could prove pivotal in determining whether Modi and Xi will meet in Tianjin, and what message that would send to the broader region.
Diplomatic Thaw
Since the deadly Galwan clash in June 2020, which claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers and an undisclosed number on the Chinese side, India and China have held multiple rounds of military and diplomatic talks. While disengagement has taken place at several flashpoints, key issues like full de-escalation and the resumption of regular patrols remain unresolved.
A recent signal of improving ties came during the BRICS Summit in Kazan in October 2024, where Modi and Xi met informally. The meeting led to a mutual agreement to resume patrols in the Depsang plains, a development seen as a turning point in efforts to restore normalcy.
Since then, India has eased visa restrictions for Chinese nationals, while China reopened the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra for Indian pilgrims, another sign of growing goodwill. The resumption of direct flights between Indian and Chinese carriers is being discussed, though New Delhi has not yet approved the move.
Huma Siddiqui
