After a gap of over seven years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in China on Saturday.
Taking to X, the prime minister said, "Landed in Tianjin, China. Looking forward to deliberations at the SCO Summit and meeting various world leaders."
The prime minister last visited China in June, 2018, to attend the SCO summit.
The visit of PM Modi to China for the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Sunday and Monday comes in the wake of a sudden downturn in India-US ties triggered by Washington's policies on tariffs.
The visit also comes in the wake of a series of high-level engagements between India and China, the most recent being the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to New Delhi, to reset their ties that came under severe strain following the deadly clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley in June 2020.
A Chinese media report even went on to the extent of claiming that the active participation of India in the SCO Tianjin Summit "reflects its repositioning of the multilateral cooperation framework."
Modi and Xi are expected to take stock of India-China economic ties and deliberate on steps to further normalise relations. Both countries need a stable surrounding environment to promote domestic reforms and economic growth in the wake of a sluggish global economic recovery.
Ahead of his trip to Tianjin, Modi said it is important for India and China to work together to bring stability to the world economic order.
In an interview with Japan's The Yomiuri Shimbun, Modi said a stable, predictable, and amicable bilateral relations between India and China can have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity. "Given the current volatility in the world economy, it is also important for India and China, as two major economies, to work together to bring stability to the world economic order," Modi said.