Behind the Xi-Modi thaw, a larger US-China game

This article was originally published as Jabin T. Jacob.  2026. ‘Behind the Xi-Modi thaw, a larger US-China game’. The Indian Express. 18 September.

In terms of realpolitik, it is fair to say that the 18th BRICS Summit hosted by New Delhi was really all about whether Communist Party of China General Secretary and Chinese President Xi Jinping would even make it, and then after he did, about the bilateral meeting between him and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. For India, this was about sustaining the thaw in bilateral ties for domestic economic reasons and about signalling to the US that it had other friends around the world and could influence those friends. For China, however, Xi’s turning up in New Delhi — after skipping the 2023 G20 summit India hosted — was less about India and primarily about signalling to the US less than two weeks before he embarks on a state visit to Washington, DC.

The Modi-Xi meeting on the sidelines of the Summit saw both countries produce their own statement. Comparing the two, there are four noteworthy aspects.

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