India’s Modi to meet Xi and Putin on first China trip in seven years as US tariffs bite

PM’s four-day trip, which includes Japan visit, comes as Delhi seeks to diversify trade and bolster ties with Beijing

The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, will land in China this weekend for his first visit in seven years – a trip that puts him in the company of the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, just as India’s ties with Washington have soured.

Modi’s visit to Tianjin for a regional security summit comes days after the US doubled tariffs on Indian exports to 50%, citing New Delhi’s refusal to stop buying Russian oil.