In February 2020, former US President Donald Trump visited India for the much-publicized “Namaste Trump!” rally in Ahmedabad, where his warm ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi were on full display.

At the time, US-India relations appeared to be thriving, particularly in trade and strategic cooperation.

However, by June of that same year, India’s relationship with China collapsed after the deadly Galwan Valley clashes in Ladakh, which claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers.

In response, India banned over 200 Chinese apps, including TikTok, and bolstered defence ties with the US and the Quad alliance alongside Japan and Australia.

As recently as May this year, India still viewed China as its primary adversary, especially after Pakistan employed Chinese defence systems in a brief four-day war with India following an attack in Kashmir.

The geopolitical fault lines were clear, with New Delhi aligning more closely with Washington.

Yet, Trump’s aggressive tariff policies, including a 50 percent duty on Indian imports, and the shifting regional dynamics forced India to reconsider its approach toward Beijing.

Analysts argue that Washington’s strategy under Trump weakened decades of US influence in Asia, indirectly nudging India and China toward dialogue.

China seized the opportunity to extend a diplomatic olive branch. During Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Delhi, he met with India’s S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval to address their border disputes.

Both sides announced confidence-building measures, including resuming direct flights, easing visa restrictions, and facilitating border trade.

Beijing also allowed Indian pilgrims access to holy sites in Tibet, and both countries agreed to seek an “early harvest” settlement on contested border areas.

Modi, meanwhile, accepted an invitation from President Xi Jinping to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin, marking his first visit to China in over seven years.

The shift was underscored by symbolic gestures. Wang Yi emphasized that restoring border stability served both nations’ interests, while Xi Jinping called for a “Dragon-Elephant tango” to describe closer cooperation between the Asian giants.

Efforts to rebuild ties had already begun last October, when Modi and Xi met in Russia for the first time in years, breaking a cycle of avoidance at international forums.

These engagements suggested that both sides were willing to set aside, at least temporarily, the bitterness of Galwan to pursue practical cooperation.

Still, analysts caution against overestimating the durability of this thaw. Sana Hashmi of the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation noted that for Beijing, the outreach is tactical, while for New Delhi it stems from uncertainty and the desire to limit adversaries amid shifting geopolitical pressures.

Trump’s tariffs and his administration’s overtures to Pakistan, including hosting its army chief twice at the White House, left India wary of overdependence on Washington.

As a result, India appears to be recalibrating its foreign policy—balancing between China and the US—to navigate a volatile strategic environment in Asia.

Source: Aljazeera.