CWA # 2314
The World This Quarter
India and the World (Jul-Sep 2026):
Bilateral Outreach, Multilateral Engagement and Strategic Balancing
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Adarsh Vijay
25 October 2026
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In the third quarter of 2026, India's foreign policy combined high-level bilateral visits with active participation in regional and global forums. New Delhi’s major engagements spanned Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America, with priorities ranging from defence and maritime security to trade, technology, and energy. The quarter also highlighted India’s efforts to expand its role as a middle power from the Global South while responding to regional tensions and adapting to emerging multilateral power play.
1. Indo-Pacific Outreach
Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi undertook a three-nation visit to Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand from 6 to 11 July. This came soon after Japan’s PM Sanae Takaichi’s first official visit to India from 1 to 3 July for the 16th India-Japan Annual Summit, which focused on strengthening the “Special Strategic and Global Partnership” through cooperation on defence co-development (UNICORN naval radio antenna system), clean energy and artificial intelligence (AI). Modi’s visit to Australia was for the Third India-Australia Annual Summit. The outcomes spanned defence, maritime, energy, education, culture, heritage, science, technology, and sports. Modi’s meeting with his Australian counterpart also finalised the “administrative arrangement” of the India-Australia Civil Nuclear Agreement. Interestingly, Modi’s visit to New Zealand was the first by an Indian PM in four decades. Besides, India and New Zealand upgraded their ties to a Strategic Partnership. Both countries also endorsed a Roadmap to 2030 as a shared framework to strengthen collaboration. The visit also featured the signing of agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) in key sectors such as defence, disaster management, dairy and animal husbandry, sports, and tourism. India’s External Affairs Minister (EAM), S. Jaishankar, attended the ASEAN Regional Forum and the 21st East Asia Summit on 22-23 July in the Philippines. The meeting comes as 2026 has been designated the ASEAN-India year of maritime cooperation. He also met QUAD foreign ministers and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Manila on the sidelines of the ASEAN framework meetings.
2. High-Level Visits
External affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar undertook a six-nation tour from 5 to 15 July. The visit included the four Gulf states affected by the West Asian war: Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. He also visited the United States (US) and Belgium. Indian President Droupadi Murmu went on a three-nation visit to Moldova (the first-ever visit by an Indian President), North Macedonia and Romania to boost cooperation in domains including trade and technology and strengthen people-to-people ties. Indian Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth visited Kathmandu in August on his Nepali counterpart’s invitation. President Ramchandra Paudel conferred the rank of Honorary General of the Nepal Army on General Seth (a tradition since 1950). The visit sought to enhance mutual trust and cooperation between the armies of both countries. Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal made a four-day visit to Japan from 24-27 August, leading a delegation of 200 members, to boost trade and investments. Importantly, 2026 is designated as the “India-Japan Year of Shared Horizons” to mark 75 years of diplomatic relations. Belgian PM Bart De Wever and Defence Minister Theo Francken visited India from 2-4 September, strengthening bilateral ties and India-Europe/EU engagement. Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi also made his first visit to India from 19-20 August and reviewed defence cooperation with his Indian counterpart.
S. Jaishankar met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow during the visit to co-chair the 27th session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation on 23-24 August. Mr. Jaishankar also met his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. New Delhi and Moscow discussed expanding bilateral trade and economic cooperation. They also reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global issues.
3. UNGA and V4+1
At the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2026, India’s EAM Jaishankar criticised Pakistan over state-sponsored cross-border terrorism. He also joined his counterparts from Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary for the first V4+India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, held under the Slovak Presidency, on the margins of the UNGA in New York on 21 September 2026.
4. India-SACU Trade Agreement
On 12 August 2026, India and Southern African Customs Union (SACU), comprising Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa, signed Terms of Reference (ToR) to begin negotiations for a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA). The proposed agreement aims to provide India with preferential market access through lower tariffs on exports ranging from automobiles, auto parts, and pharmaceuticals to industrial machinery.
5. India-China Boundary Talks
On 25 August 2026, India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held the 25th Round of Special Representatives talks in Beijing. The two sides reached an eight-point consensus on the Line of Actual Control. India and China noted progress on trans-border cooperation and agreed to implement the consensus, which also covers trade and pilgrimage (Kailash-Manasarovar Yatra). Both countries also agreed on two additional meeting points for General Level Mechanism/Senior Highest Military Commander meetings, and two additional channels for border military hotlines in the Eastern and Middle Sectors. India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri’s China visit on 27-28 July also focused on advancing bilateral ties, trade and economic cooperation, cultural ties, people-to-people exchanges and maintaining peace and tranquillity along the India-China border.
6. The SCO Summit
PM Modi attened in the 26th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, from 31 August to 1 September. The Bishkek Declaration reflected a “deep concern” over the war in the Persian Gulf. It called for an “inclusive government” in Afghanistan. Against backdrop of Pakistan assuming the rotating Chairship for 2026-2027, Mr. Modi said that there can be no “double standards” in SCO’s counter-terror architecture. He also stated that terrorism is a “grave challenge to all of humanity.” Stressing the need to move beyond an “action-reaction” mindset, he urged the need to dismantle the terrorist ecosystem, including financing, recruitment, radicalisation, and safe havens. Given the ongoing West Asian crisis, Mr. Modi also expressed support for Iran’s sovereignty.
7. BRICS Summit in New Delhi
India hosted the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on 12-13 September, bringing its year-long Chairship. The Summit concluded with adoption of the New Delhi Declaration by consensus. With 140 paragraphs, it was the longest in BRICS history. The Declaration urged “maximum restraint” in the Iran war, condemned unilateral coercive measures and secondary sanctions. It also underlined the need to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure. Moreover, the summit facilitated sideline diplomacy between Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed. It marked the highest-level meeting between the two countries since the war began.
To Conclude:
India’s engagements during this quarter revealed a pattern of bilateral outreach, multilateral engagements and strategic balancing. Multicontinental engagement was central to India’s outreach endeavours. In fact, Act East Policy was an important vector for this quarter. Defence and security increasingly overlapped with economic diplomacy, as bilateral visits linked military cooperation with trade, technology, energy, and investment. Evidently, counter-terrorism remained a consistent theme across India’s interventions at the UNGA and SCO. Border talks with China emphasised stability through dialogue, while India sustained its ties with Russia amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Meanwhile, engagement with SACU and the V4 contributes to India’s regional partnerships. India’s fourth BRICS Chairship also demonstrated its capacity to lead Global South cooperation.
About the author
Mr Adarsh Vijay is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science, Madras Christian College, Chennai.