Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to travel to Tianjin, China, later this month to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, taking place from August 31 to September 1, 2025. This marks PM Modi’s first official visit to China since the deadly Galwan Valley incident in 2020, which significantly strained relations between the two countries.
Modi’s last trip to China occurred in 2019, and he briefly engaged with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the BRICS Summit held in Kazan, Russia, in 2024. His upcoming presence at the SCO summit signals a cautious step toward stabilizing diplomatic ties.
The summit follows a major breakthrough in India-China relations, as both nations recently reached a consensus on resuming coordinated patrolling along the nearly 3,500-kilometer Line of Actual Control (LAC), effectively ending a four-year military standoff that began after the Galwan clash.
In July 2025, External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar attended the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Tianjin, where he also met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Additionally, Jaishankar, along with other SCO dignitaries, met President Xi Jinping.
Earlier in June, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh participated in the SCO Defense Ministers’ Meeting in China but refrained from endorsing the joint declaration. India’s objection stemmed from the declaration’s failure to mention terrorism — an issue India consistently urges the global community to address. Singh also had productive talks with Chinese Defense Minister Admiral Dong Jun, discussing future bilateral cooperation.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval was also in Beijing earlier this year for the 20th SCO Security Council Secretaries’ Meeting. In his remarks, Doval emphasized the need for a unified and uncompromising approach to combat global terrorism. He called out terror networks such as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), urging action against these groups and their support systems.
Formed in 2001, the SCO now includes 10 member nations: India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Belarus. The upcoming summit could serve as a turning point in regional cooperation and India-China diplomacy.
