Modi to Travel to China for SCO Summit, Marking First Visit Since Galwan

Modi to Visit China for SCO Summit, First Since Galwan Clash.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin from August 31 to September 1 — marking his first trip to the country since the deadly Galwan Valley clash in 2020. The visit is seen as a key step in recalibrating India-China ties after years of tension along the Line of Actual Control.

PM Modi’s last official visit to China was in 2019. He did, however, meet Chinese President Xi Jinping most recently on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan in October 2024 — a meeting that helped renew diplomatic engagement between the two nations.

Diplomatic Rebalancing Amid Global Pressures
Modi’s visit comes at a time when India is navigating growing global pressure over its continued oil trade with Russia and responding to new US tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. In this context, New Delhi’s outreach to Beijing could be seen as part of a strategic balancing act — strengthening engagement with China while managing its ties with the West.

The SCO summit will take place against a complex backdrop — including China’s support for Pakistan and the fallout of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people. In June, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh refused to sign a joint statement during an SCO defence ministers’ meeting after the draft omitted any mention of the Pahalgam attack, but made indirect references to unrest in Balochistan — a move perceived as Pakistan-led and unfriendly to India.

However, a month later, China issued a rare, sharply-worded statement condemning the Pahalgam attack after the United States designated The Resistance Front — a Lashkar-e-Taiba proxy — as a foreign terrorist organisation. “China firmly opposes all forms of terrorism and strongly condemns the terrorist attack that occurred on April 22,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said, urging regional countries to deepen counterterrorism cooperation.

Bilateral Meetings on the Cards
The summit is expected to include discussions on terrorism, trade, and regional stability among the bloc’s ten member states — which include India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, and several Central Asian countries. There is also a possibility of bilateral meetings between PM Modi and President Xi Jinping, as well as with Russian President Vladimir Putin — both seen as crucial conversations amid shifting global alliances.

Following their meeting at the BRICS summit last year, India and China had quietly resumed efforts to de-escalate border tensions. The revival of the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra had further signaled a thaw in ties. Founded in 2001, the SCO aims to enhance political, economic, and security-related cooperation in the region. Its full members include Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.