https://www.scmp.com/rss/523392/feed The latest news and top stories on Vikram Misri, India's Foreign Secretary since July 2024. Previously, he was Deputy National Security Advisor and Ambassador to China, Myanmar and Spain. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan A stretch of awkward diplomacy is unfolding in the Indo-Pacific. After India’s 2025 term as the Quad’s rotating chair ended without a summit, New Delhi is planning to host a foreign ministers’ meeting that could be framed as a leaders-level discussion, even if the top leaders do not attend, according to two people familiar with the matter. The move is seen as a way to smooth India’s ruffled feathers on several counts. “It’s akin to putting lipstick on a pig,” said Sourabh Gupta of the Institute... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3350230/quad-summit-plan-turns-uneasy-india-pushes-ahead-without-top-leaders-sources?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3350230/quad-summit-plan-turns-uneasy-india-pushes-ahead-without-top-leaders-sources?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Apr 2026 22:17:13 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow A visit by a top American official to India this week has raised expectations that bilateral defence ties are getting “back on track” amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. But analysts warn that both sides are unlikely to reach full agreement on New Delhi’s energy and security concerns, while the US-Israeli war against Iran could unsettle the relationship. Speaking in New Delhi on Wednesday, US Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby said India would play a central role in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3347980/india-and-us-seek-reset-defence-ties-iran-war-threatens-be-wild-card?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3347980/india-and-us-seek-reset-defence-ties-iran-war-threatens-be-wild-card?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Mar 2026 08:07:43 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang Not far from the fringe of the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan, in a remote valley to the north of the Karakoram mountain range, China’s road building programme has encountered another tough diplomatic posture from New Delhi. In January, India’s external affairs ministry said the stretch was “Indian territory” and that it had “consistently protested with the Chinese side against attempts to alter the ground reality”. Beijing responded that the area “belongs to China”, adding... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343391/why-harsh-words-between-china-and-india-over-remote-inhospitable-valley?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343391/why-harsh-words-between-china-and-india-over-remote-inhospitable-valley?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Feb 2026 04:00:09 +0000 Brian Rhoads,Raymond Ma Brian Rhoads,Raymond Ma India and China opened a new round of strategic dialogue as US tariffs on their exports spur the two Asian giants to broaden global trade ties and move beyond past disputes. Both countries “uphold the strategic perception that China and India are cooperative partners instead of rivals”, China’s foreign ministry said in a statement after Tuesday’s meeting in New Delhi between Executive Vice-Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu and Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. “China and India should deepen mutual... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/article/3343183/china-india-find-common-cause-push-multipolar-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/article/3343183/china-india-find-common-cause-push-multipolar-world?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Feb 2026 09:07:47 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan Senior diplomats from China and India met in New Delhi on Tuesday for what Beijing described as a new round of strategic dialogue, emphasising the need to view each other as partners rather than competitors amid shifting global dynamics. India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri hosted China’s Executive Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, who was in the country for the Brics Sherpa Meeting from February 8 to 10. The two sides’ readouts of the meeting, however, revealed a persistent gap in how the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3343113/china-and-india-seek-reset-talks-old-fault-lines-remain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3343113/china-and-india-seek-reset-talks-old-fault-lines-remain?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Feb 2026 18:16:30 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India’s increasing engagement with Gulf nations is driven more by trade and energy security, even as it seeks to forge a defence partnership with the United Arab Emirates amid deepening rivalries in the region, according to analysts. Last week, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan made a brief stop in New Delhi, where both sides pledged to deepen trade ties and defence cooperation. The trip has fuelled speculation that the UAE is seeking to diversify its strategic partnerships amid... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3341287/why-indias-focus-middle-east-trade-despite-defence-ties-uae?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3341287/why-indias-focus-middle-east-trade-despite-defence-ties-uae?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Jan 2026 12:17:51 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s first visit to Asia has raised India’s hopes for a long-awaited trade pact with the European Union as Berlin pushes for deeper engagement with South Asia amid heightened global tensions. Merz began his two-day visit to India on Monday by paying homage to India’s founding father Mahatma Gandhi at his ashram, or place of meditation, in Ahmedabad before joining counterpart Narendra Modi at a traditional kite festival, where the two flew kites together from an... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3339750/germanys-merz-pledges-fast-track-india-eu-trade-deal-during-first-official-asia-visit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3339750/germanys-merz-pledges-fast-track-india-eu-trade-deal-during-first-official-asia-visit?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jan 2026 09:46:52 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan Despite a high-level phone call between US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, 2025 is likely to end without the long-promised US-India trade deal, as the “America first” leader continues to stall the agreement while working to cement improved ties with Beijing. The call came just days after Modi hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin. While the Indian Prime Minister described his conversation with Trump as “warm and engaging” in a social media post,... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3336135/trump-and-modi-have-warm-phone-call-2025-unlikely-end-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3336135/trump-and-modi-have-warm-phone-call-2025-unlikely-end-trade-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Dec 2025 23:00:52 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji A plunge in the value of the Indian rupee to record lows over the past week, making it Asia’s worst-performing currency, could be a mixed blessing for the South Asian economy as it pushes to finalise a trade deal with the United States, observers say. The rupee depreciated beyond 90 to the US dollar this week, deepening a slide that began last week. While the currency’s weakness is driving up the cost of essentials such as oil imports and overseas tuition, it has also brought some short-term... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3336033/why-indias-currency-slide-creating-us-tariff-relief-exporters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3336033/why-indias-currency-slide-creating-us-tariff-relief-exporters?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Dec 2025 08:30:13 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday at an annual summit and agreed to diversify mutual economic ties, as the United States presses India to revise its decades-old partnership with Russia. The 23rd Russia-India Summit comes at a pivotal moment as the US pushes for a Ukraine peace deal while seeking global cooperation. It will test New Delhi’s efforts to balance relations with Moscow and Washington as the nearly four-year war in Ukraine... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3335443/india-and-russia-agree-boost-trade-us100-billion-2030?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3335443/india-and-russia-agree-boost-trade-us100-billion-2030?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 05:15:39 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow The anticipated absence of US President Donald Trump from this year’s Quad summit in India is likely to “highlight cracks” in American-led alliances and raise fresh concerns over Washington’s dependability, according to analysts. While observers say the United States is unlikely to abandon the Quad altogether, they suggest its engagement may fall short of the intensity seen under the previous administration – at a time when regional anxieties over China’s assertiveness remain high. Citing... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324371/trumps-absence-quad-summit-india-sign-fragile-us-led-alliances?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3324371/trumps-absence-quad-summit-india-sign-fragile-us-led-alliances?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Sep 2025 11:07:33 +0000 Aparna Divya Aparna Divya The recent handshake between Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing is more than a symbolic gesture. It reflects a cautious attempt to compensate for years of silence between the two Asian giants. As Jaishankar’s first visit to China since the Galwan Valley clash in 2020, it can be seen as an inflection point in India-China relations. There was a flurry of China-India re-engagement following the 2024 border agreement, which allowed for... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3318952/china-and-india-perform-balancing-act-breakthrough-possible?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3318952/china-and-india-perform-balancing-act-breakthrough-possible?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Jul 2025 01:30:08 +0000