Facing mounting tariffs and sharp rhetoric from Washington, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered a different message this week: India has powerful partners and won’t be isolated.
At the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in China, Modi clasped hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in a show of unity.
Xi blasted “Cold War mentalities” and called for dismantling walls rather than erecting them. Modi rode with Putin for nearly an hour and welcomed him to India later this year.
The optics underscored Modi’s signal to President Trump and America: India will continue buying Russian oil and strengthening ties with Beijing, even as U.S. tariffs and insults strain relations.