India, China pledge to deepen partnership at SCO summit

September 1, 2025 (MLN): India and China agreed to strengthen their partnership rather than view each other as rivals, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China.

The two leaders discussed trade, border stability, and ways to navigate global tariff tensions, underscoring their role as development partners amid a shifting geopolitical landscape.

This marks Modi’s first visit to China in seven years, where he joined Russian President Vladimir Putin, leaders from Iran, Pakistan, and Central Asian states in a show of Global South solidarity.

The meeting comes just days after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods, straining Washington’s decades of cultivated ties with New Delhi.

Analysts suggest Xi and Modi are aligning their positions in response to Western pressure, as CNBC reported.

He said stability at the frontier was crucial for the interests of 2.8bn people in both nations. Xi echoed the sentiment, noting that the border issue should not define bilateral ties and describing China and India as “development opportunities rather than threats.”

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri later told reporters that the border situation had eased following an October 2024 patrolling agreement, moving towards normalization.

He confirmed that Modi and Xi also discussed the global economic environment, tariff challenges, and avenues to strengthen commercial cooperation.

The leaders addressed regional and global concerns, including terrorism and fair trade, while also resuming direct flights between both countries and easing visa restrictions.

China recently lifted curbs on rare earths, fertilizers, and tunnel boring machines, while allowing Indian pilgrims access to religious sites in Tibet.

At the same time, longstanding disputes persist over issues such as India’s trade deficit, China’s planned mega-dam in Tibet, and Beijing’s support for Pakistan.

Despite these challenges, experts view the talks as a cautious step toward stabilizing ties.

“There’s a sense of the need to stabilize the relationship in the context of broader geopolitical currents,” said Manoj Kewalramani, a Sino-Indian relations expert at the Takshashila Institution in Bengaluru.

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