On September 1, 2025, the port city of Tianjin, China, became the stage for a diplomatic spectacle that drew the world's attention. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, both seasoned leaders with a flair for showmanship, met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. Their encounter, unfolding against a backdrop of shifting alliances and economic tensions, offered a vivid snapshot of the evolving global order.
The two leaders, described by Russian state media as old friends, took their conversation to an unusually private setting: the back seat of Putin's Russian-made limousine. For 45 minutes, Modi and Putin engaged in what the Indian leader later called an "insightful" exchange. Modi posted a photo of their journey, his trademark hearty laughter on full display, while Putin grinned beside him. According to Putin's spokesman, "They were at home... They felt comfortable there, and that's why they continued the conversation."
This camaraderie was not lost on observers. Moments before the summit's group photo, Modi was seen clasping Putin's hand with genuine warmth, while Chinese President Xi Jinping looked on with a measured smile. The three leaders, surrounded by their respective entourages, chatted animatedly, signaling a unity that could hardly be missed.
The timing of this display of friendship was no accident. Just days earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump had imposed a punishing 25% tariff on Indian imports, raising total duties to a staggering 50%. The move was a direct response to India's continued purchases of discounted Russian oil, a lifeline for Moscow as Western nations shunned its exports in protest of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Washington has repeatedly warned New Delhi that buying Russian crude helps fund the Kremlin's military campaign, but India has stood firm, defending its imports as essential for meeting the needs of its 1.4 billion people.
"To end the conflict soonest and establish peace permanently, we need to find out a way. It's a call of the entire humanity," Modi said during the summit, welcoming initiatives aimed at halting the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Putin, for his part, thanked both Chinese and Indian leaders for their support and efforts "to facilitate the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis." In a speech, he referenced "understandings reached" with Trump during their meeting in Alaska the previous month, expressing hope that these would "open the way to peace in Ukraine." Despite these words, Russia maintained that there were no plans for peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as of the summit.
Putin's relationship with Modi was on full display throughout the event. Addressing Modi as a "dear friend," Putin described Russia-India ties as "special, friendly, and trusting." He emphasized, "Russia and India have maintained special relations for decades. Friendly, trusting. This is the foundation for the development of our relations in the future." The Russian leader's foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, announced that Putin would travel to India in December for the 23rd India-Russia annual summit, underscoring the depth of the partnership.
India's embrace of Russia has not gone unnoticed in Washington. On social media, Trump lambasted the US-India trade relationship as "a totally one sided disaster," complaining about India's surging Russian oil purchases and signaling that no trade deal with New Delhi was in sight. "They have now offered to cut their Tariffs to nothing, but it's getting late," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "They should have done so years ago. Just some simple facts for people to ponder!!!"
Analysts say Trump's steep tariffs and the increasingly combative tone from the White House have pushed New Delhi closer to both China and Russia. Harsh Pant, vice president of foreign policy at the New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation, observed, "While India-China reengagements started much before Trump, his policies are accelerating a process whereby India seems to be working much more closely with China and Russia to push back against economic unilateralism it is witnessing from the U.S."
The numbers tell their own story. Russia now accounts for approximately 37% of India's total oil imports, a dramatic shift from the country's historical reliance on Middle Eastern crude. In the 2024-25 financial year, trade between India and Russia soared to a record $68.7 billion, with Indian imports from Russia reaching around $64 billion and exports to Russia totaling about $5 billion. The two nations have set an ambitious goal: to boost bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030.
Modi's approach reflects India's longstanding commitment to strategic autonomy—a desire to maintain and strengthen multi-dimensional partnerships without being tethered to any single power bloc. Sreeram Sundar Chaulia, an international affairs expert at New Delhi's Jindal School of International Affairs, noted that Modi's meeting with Putin underscored India's stance that it prizes its "old and reliable strategic partners" and has "sufficient strategic autonomy in its foreign policy to maintain and strengthen its multi-dimensional partnership." At the same time, Chaulia remarked, the Indian government hopes the current turbulence with the U.S. is temporary. "Then, India can return happily to having the Russian cake and eating the American pie as part of its multi-alignment strategy," he quipped.
It's not just Russia that India is courting. On the eve of the summit, Modi met with Xi Jinping, and the two leaders pledged to resolve their longstanding border differences and bolster cooperation. This move, too, is seen as part of India's broader effort to balance its relationships amid a rapidly changing geopolitical landscape.
Modi's foreign policy outreach has been robust. In 2024, he traveled to Moscow for talks with Putin in July—his first trip to Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022—and again in October for the BRICS summit in Kazan. These visits, coupled with his engagement at the SCO summit, highlight India's determination to carve out an independent path on the world stage.
Meanwhile, the United States, once India's largest trading partner, finds itself at odds with New Delhi over the latter's strategic choices. Trump's tariffs, intended to punish India for its Russian dealings, may have inadvertently deepened India's ties with Moscow and Beijing. As the leaders of China, Russia, and India stood shoulder to shoulder in Tianjin, the message was unmistakable: the world is no longer unipolar, and the alliances of the 21st century are being shaped in real time.
The summit in Tianjin may have ended, but the reverberations of Modi and Putin's "insightful" conversation—and the public warmth they displayed—are sure to echo in Washington, Moscow, and beyond. As India navigates its complex relationships with the world's major powers, it remains to be seen whether it can continue to enjoy both the Russian cake and the American pie, or if the shifting tides of global politics will force a more definitive choice.