Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are among 20 world leaders attending a regional security summit in China.
Ahead of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in the port city of Tianjin, Modi is holding talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping. This is Modi's first visit to China in seven years.
Putin, a close ally of China, arrived in Tianjin on Sunday, where he was welcomed with a red carpet.
The summit comes at a time of heightened international tensions: US President Donald Trump has imposed steep tariffs on Indian goods in retaliation for India's continued purchases of Russian oil. Meanwhile, Putin faces fresh threats of sanctions over the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The SCO, backed by Beijing, consists of 10 member states - including Pakistan and Iran - as well as 16 dialogue partner countries or countries with observer status.
Although the summit is largely symbolic, it offers opportunities for leaders to express shared concerns and shared interests – and this year, the meeting will be dominated by trade wars with the US.
Putin expected by Xi for regional security summit
Photo: Associated Press
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived on Sunday at the Meijiang International Center in Tianjin, where he was welcomed by Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
The 10-member group that will meet on Sunday and Monday in the port city of Tianjin has grown in size and influence over the past 24 years, although its goals and programs remain unclear.
Full membership includes Russia, Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Initially seen as a deterrent to US influence in Central Asia, the original organization elected four new members with the addition of India and Pakistan in 2017, Iran in 2023, and Belarus in 2024.
Some of them are clear enemies of the West, notably Iran and Russia's close ally Belarus.
Others, including India, China and Russia, have a more ambiguous relationship, whether because of Washington's unstable stance on the conflict in Ukraine or because of the chaos caused by US tariffs, which have upended key trading relationships with countries such as China and India.
China and India pledge to be partners, not rivals
Photo: Associated Press
The leaders of China and India have said trust between them is deepening after years of tensions that include a long-running border dispute.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in the port city of Tianjin on Sunday. It was Modi's first visit to China in seven years.
Xi told Modi that China and India should be partners, not rivals, while Modi said there is now an "atmosphere of peace and stability" between them.
President Putin is also at the summit, attended by more than 20 world leaders, but this year it has been overshadowed by trade wars with the US.
President Trump has imposed high tariffs on Indian goods as punishment for Delhi's continued purchase of Russian oil, and Putin faces threats of sanctions for his ongoing war on Ukraine.
As US-India relations face increasingly difficult situations, Modi is reaching out to Xi.
The two countries are not only the most populous, but also have two of the largest economies in the world.
Modi has announced that flights between India and China, suspended since deadly troop clashes on their shared Himalayan border in 2020, would resume, without giving a timeline.
Meanwhile, Xi said that "both sides should approach and handle our relationship from a strategic height and long-term perspective" and that "it is the right choice for both sides to be friends."