S Jaishankar is in China for the SCO foreign ministers’ meet—the second meeting in the SCO format in as many months. Last time out, it was defence minister Rajnath Singh, who refused to sign a joint statement on counter-terrorism, which failed to mention Pahalgam but had conveniently included the independent struggle in Balochistan—a pain point for Pakistan.

The refusal brought out India’s resistance—It is not going to be bullied into signing or accepting narratives. And just like Singh’s refusal and Prime Minister Narendra Modi taking the fight to China under the BRICS banner in Brazil, Jaishankar would be expected to resist and carve out the agenda for India.

What we have seen from the foreign minister does fill us with great promise. He has had no issues shutting down unscrupulous criticism and with great gusto. In May this year, at the Arctic Circle India Forum during an interaction with former Icelandic President OG Grímsson and the head of the ORF, Jaishankar took a swipe at European nations, saying India is looking for partners, not preachers. There are other examples as well, but we can surely move beyond them.

The Precedent in Qingdao

To understand the challenge that awaits Jaishankar, one must first dissect the significance of the Qingdao summit.

India’s refusal to sign the joint communiqué was a calculated disruption of a coordinated China-Pakistan strategic objective designed to diplomatically corner India. The draft statement was a textbook example of Chinese manipulation,........

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