Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in Tianjin, China, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, his first visit to the country in seven years. On Sunday, he held a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, focusing on stabilising and reviving strained relations. Modi underlined that India seeks to strengthen ties with China based on mutual respect, trust, and sensitivity, while also noting that peace has been maintained along the border.

Xi, in his remarks, said India and China should view each other as partners rather than rivals and emphasised that both nations have opportunities to complement each other’s development. The two leaders had last interacted on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, in 2024.

The meeting comes at a crucial time, with India’s tensions growing with the United States over the steep tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is also attending the SCO Summit. Modi and Putin are scheduled to meet on Monday, where discussions are expected to cover trade, defence cooperation, US pressure regarding Russian oil imports, and preparations for Putin’s planned visit to India later this year.

Leaders from Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, and Egypt are among the other attendees of the summit. While Modi is set to attend a welcome banquet on Sunday, the main leaders’ summit will take place on Monday, September 1.