Modi meets Xi in Tianjin: Handshakes, hard lines and hidden messages

When Narendra Modi met Xi Jinping in Tianjin on the sidelines of the SCO leaders’ summit on Sunday, there was much speculation and excitement. This was understandable. After all, this was Modi’s first visit to China since Indian and Chinese troops clashed along the border in 2020.

Through this outreach — and during regular SCO ministerial interactions — New Delhi has made its red lines loud and clear to Beijing. The issue of the border has figured prominently in discussions between Modi and Xi. The former pitched a stable relationship between the two nations based on ‘mutual respect, mutual interest, and mutual sensitivity’. He underscored that peace along the Line of Actual Control (LoAC) will have a bearing on the trajectory of the India-China relationship.

While disengagement has taken place along the LAC in eastern Ladakh, de-escalation is yet to happen. Some 50,000–60,000 troops are still deployed on either side of the LoAC in the region.


In August, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi was in New Delhi for the 24th round of Special Representatives (SRs) talks. The SRs mechanism was set up in a 2003 agreement, and is mandated to look into ways to resolve the boundary question from a political perspective. During this sitting, it was resolved to set up an ‘expert group’ under the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs to work out the feasibility of boundary delimitation in the border areas, and a ‘working group’ to advance effective border management to maintain peace along the LoAC.

On the sidelines of the SCO meeting of defence ministers at Qingdao in June, Rajnath Singh had told his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun that their two nations should work towards a permanent solution of border demarcation, and a structured roadmap of permanent engagement and de-escalation. Thus, the initiative to effectively manage the LoAC and delineate the border — which has been a bone of contention — gathered momentum.

The other issue that Modi raised with Xi in Tianjin was the issue of cross-border terrorism that has come to the forefront after the April 22 attack in Pahalgam. Indian representations during previous SCO ministerial meets have also highlighted this issue.

During the SCO meet in July, S Jaishankar had reminded China that the prime objective of the multilateral grouping was to combat terrorism, separatism and extremism. Banned Huawei satellite phones and encrypted apps were suspected to be aiding terrorists involved in the Pahalgam terror attack in communicating with their handlers across the border.

Earlier, Beijing blocked moves to place Jaish-e-Mohammad’s Rauf Asghar, Lashkar-e-Taiba’s Sajid Mir and Abdur Rahman Makki on a UN sanctions list. Rajnath Singh had refused to endorse a joint statement at the SCO defence ministers meet in China in June, as India had been pushing for inclusion of tougher language on terrorism.

This concerted effort seems to have borne fruit. The Tianjin SCO declaration states, “The member states strongly condemned the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. They expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the dead and the wounded. They further stated that perpetrators, organisers and sponsors of such attacks must be brought to justice.”

It added that “member states, while reaffirming their firm commitment to the fight against terrorism, separatism, and extremism, stress the inadmissibility of attempts to use terrorist, separatist and extremist groups for mercenary purposes.” This puts Pakistan on notice, since Rawalpindi-Islamabad is known for the use of proxy terror groups, and the Pakistani Army has deep links with terrorist outfits.

The Taiwan issue has come up prominently during previous interactions between India and China. New Delhi and Taipei have been assiduously fostering cooperation in S&T. Foxconn chairman-CEO Young Liu received the Padma Bhushan last year. He later met Modi in New Delhi to discuss investment plans.

During the media briefing after the Modi-Xi summit on Sunday, the issue of Taiwan was raised. Rather than being on the defensive, India has steadfastly maintained that it is well within its rights to build relations with Taiwan in economic, technological and cultural spheres. Also, in maintaining that there was no change in its position on the Taiwan issue, this assertion is cryptic in itself, as India did not repeat that it commits to ‘One-China’.

While Modi asserted India’s red lines to China during the Tianjin summit, it also sent out a message to the US and a response to Trump’s rat-a-tat tariffs on Indian goods supposedly over its import of Russian oil. In Modi sharing a ride with Vladimir Putin, New Delhi has sent a message to Washington that it will double down on strategic autonomy, and won’t back down.