Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi took a longer route to reach Tashkent on Saturday, travelling via China as Pakistan’s airspace remained closed to Indian aircraft.
During his visit to Uzbekistan, Modi held delegation-level talks with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to discuss ways to strengthen strategic ties between the two countries. The two leaders reviewed cooperation in trade and investment, defence, digital connectivity, energy, education and people-to-people exchanges, while also setting an agenda for future cooperation.
Modi’s route drew many reactions online, with users discussing the implications of India’s airspace restrictions and its relations with neighbouring countries.
“Geopolitics is a funny game,” one user wrote. Several users focused on the possibility of China also restricting its airspace to India. One reaction said, “Imagine if China does same. Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.”
Another user raised the broader question of relations between Asian neighbours, saying, “I am not in favor of this kind of bullshit. But imagine if Bangladesh and China would have closed their air spaces for India, on current divergences. India should come out of Chanakya’s principle that ‘Your neighbor is your enemy’. Cooperation and mutual coexistence is possible.”
Another user pointed to India’s border with China and wrote, “Has India forgotten it has a direct border with China at the Karakoram pass? Leh, DBG, Hotan, Kashgar dot the route as emergency landing points.”
The discussion also moved towards the wider consequences of diplomatic disputes. “You set rules for others yourself, and others can do the same to you,” one user said.
Another reaction linked the situation to the lack of regional cooperation, saying, “Asia remains too divided to develop a common identity and strategic voice. That fragmentation is why the continent remains so heavily shaped by Western diplomacy.”
Some users directly linked the longer journey to India’s foreign policy. “The cost of adventures India continues to pay. Including the PM,” one reaction said.
Another wrote, “How you know your diplomacy and geopolitician have failed? Forced to turn a 3 hour flight into an 8 hour detour.”
The route also prompted sarcasm about Modi’s journey. “I think he wanted to sleep in aeroplane to show how hard he is working,” one user wrote. “The Indians are paying a price for their speculation and lies,” another reaction said.
One user highlighted the apparent contradiction in India’s relationship with China, writing, “This is pretty hilarious: Modi’s media in India constantly frame China as fundamentally untrustworthy but, when push comes to shove, it’s obviously the one neighbor that he personally trusts with his own life.”
Others took a more mocking tone, with one describing Modi’s flight path as “a humiliation ritual”, while another wrote, “Modi is a joke as always.”
The Pakistan Airports Authority issued a Notice to Airmen extending the ban on Indian-registered, operated, or leased civilian and military aircraft until September 24. The restriction applies to both the Karachi and Lahore flight information regions.
The initial closure occurred in late April 2025 after tensions escalated following an attack in Pahalgam, Indian-illegally occupied Jammu & Kashmir. New Delhi alleged Pakistani involvement without evidence, which Islamabad denied while offering a neutral probe. The situation led to aerial combat in May, where Pakistan downed seven Indian fighter jets.
