Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal chemistry with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday became the top trend on Chinese social media, overshadowing key events of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin.
In a strong display of friendship, President Putin waited nearly 10 minutes for Prime Minister Modi and then offered him a ride in his car.
The two leaders travelled together from the SCO conference site to the venue of their bilateral meeting. They later spent 30 more minutes inside the car in a private conversation.
By the first half of the day, the top trending topic on Weibo, China’s largest social media platform, was ‘Modi takes Putin’s car’.
On Baidu, the country’s leading search engine, the most searched phrase was ‘Modi and Putin hugged and chatted hand-in-hand’.
Weibo, which functions like X (formerly Twitter), witnessed an intense surge in conversations.
Baidu also recorded rising interest in the Modi-Putin camaraderie, with many users calling it a reflection of the ‘special friendship’ between India and Russia.
The trend outshone Chinese President Xi Jinping’s other engagements with SCO leaders, including his talks with Prime Minister Modi.
Prime Minister Modi concluded his two-day visit to Tianjin after attending the 25th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO. He held talks with several world leaders, including President Xi Jinping and President Putin.
Taking to X, PM Modi posted, “Concluding a productive visit to China, where I attended the SCO Summit and interacted with various world leaders. Also emphasised India’s stand on key global issues. Thankful to President Xi Jinping, the Chinese government and people for the successful organisation of this Summit.”
At the SCO meeting, he underlined India’s approach based on three pillars — Security, Connectivity and Opportunity. He urged collective action against terrorism, reforms in global governance, and greater opportunities for start-ups, youth, and cultural exchanges.
The summit concluded with the adoption of the Tianjin Declaration. Kyrgyzstan assumed the rotating presidency of the SCO at the end of the meeting.
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