For India’s diplomats, the past fortnight has been hectic, to put it mildly. In the space of just a few days, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar managed to host Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in New Delhi and then immediately flew to Moscow. On the surface, these were routine engagements. In reality, the timing and sequencing carry unmistakable political weight: India is signalling that it will not be boxed in by Washington’s economic penalties and that New Delhi’s idea of “strategic autonomy" remains very much alive in today’s fractured world order.

The choreography is quite telling. Wang Yi’s August 18–19 stop in New Delhi marked the highest-profile Chinese visit since the 2020 Ladakh clash, a sign that both sides are at least talking seriously about managing their tense border relationship. Barely a day later, Jaishankar was in Moscow to co-chair the 26th India–Russia Inter-Governmental Commission. Seen together,........

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