MODI STRIKES A BALANCE AT TIANJIN

Modi, Putin and Xi meeting in China caused tremors in the West, but there's no reason to expect a breakthrough in ties

- BY ASHOK K. KANTHA

A visual emerging from the recent summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Tianjin, China, has gone viral. It shows Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Vladimir Putin and President Xi Jinping in a relaxed moment. Some have interpreted it as an indication of an evolving strategic realignment, bringing India, Russia and China together.

Modi's decision to travel to China after a gap of seven years to attend the SCO summit, and his bilateral engagements with Russian and Chinese leaders reflected an ongoing recalibration in India's foreign policy amidst the backdrop of geopolitical turbulence. But any notion of India making common cause with China, either bilaterally or along with Russia, to deal with the current strain in its strategic partnership with the United States, will be a misreading of its diplomatic stance. India's relations with China and Russia will continue to be driven largely by bilateral considerations, though influenced by pulls and pressures of the larger global landscape.