Growing tension between China & India

Growing tension between China & India
Ghulam Sarwar

Writing in the “Newsweek” on “Sino-India Conflict”, Jeremy-Kahan tells us that cold war between India and China has been raging on for decades. This cold war primarily relates to 4,057 kilometer Indo-China border. Recently, stories about new Chinese incursion into India have been circulated with full vigour. To place matters for their proper perspective, we see that China claims over 90,000 square kilometers of Indian territory. Incidentally most of these claims are tied up with Tibet. As Beijing now claims Tibet as part of China, by extension it now claims parts of India that are historically seen as Tibetan. China’s claims have thus led to bitterness between these two countries during recent months.

Incidentally, last year anti-China unrest was witnessed in Tibet and as a result, progress towards settling the border dispute had taken dangerous turn. So far flames Tibetans were shown beating up the Chinese shopkeepers in Lhasa and other Tibetan cities. These provocative acts of coercion had created immense domestic pressure on Beijing to crash down on the miscreants. The Communist Party leadership was greatly alarmed at this Tibetan unrest and they were genuinely worried that the wave of unrest might as well envelope other ethnic minorities like Uighurs and Mongolians in Inner-Mongolia.

The implications of the dispute between India and China are ominous. And it is feared that the growing hostility might turn into a flash point leading to nuclear-armed neighbours turning the India-China border dispute into an issue of concern to far more than the two parties involved. To stem these risky developments, the United States and Europe as well as rest of Asia must act fast to arrest this malady. Presently a conflict involving India and China could result in a nuclear holocaust. And it could also suck the West, either as an ally in the defence of Asian democracy or as a mediator, trying to separate the contending sides. Further Jerry Kahan brings out that Beijing appears increasingly agitated about the safe haven India provides to the Dalai Lama and to a large number of Tibetan exiles, including a large number of militant supporters of Tibetan independence. These younger Tibetans are growing impatient with the Dalai Lama’s approach, indicating a willingness to accept Chinese sovereignty in return for true autonomy and commitment to non-violence.

In case, these groups decide to use India as a base for armed conflict against China and they might also seek to gain possession of important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries that lie in Indian territory close to the border. Already Beijing has launched a diplomatic offensive aimed at undercutting Indian sovereignty over the areas, which the China claim particularly the north-east state of Arunchal Pradesh.

Mr Kahan further tells us that to many Indians, China is an expansionist power bent or thwarting India’s rise as a serious challenge to Beijing influence in Asia. They are haunted by memories of India’s 1962 war with China, in which China had launched a massive invasion, totally routing the India’s forces unilaterally. They are fearful of China’s expanding naval presence in the Indian Ocean, which would serve as a noose to strangle India. Here, Shirk suggests that New Delhi should pursue ways to open the border to commerce and communication drawing itself closer to China. To him, China is now opening ties to Taiwan, as part of an effort to win the hearts and minds of its people.

Based on this analogy, he hopes that China may eventually pursue a more tolerant approach towards Tibet and other minority regions. It is a matter of satisfaction that despite all the reports of border incursions both India and China are serious about lowering the volume of tension. To set things right China’s military officials had invited Indian generals from all such regional commands to visit China and contribute towards developing confidence building measures. Indian officials have also pleaded with news organizations to tone down reporters on border incursions. Indian National Security Advisor Mr. Narayanam warned that “the beating of the war rums might become a self-fulfilling prophecy leading to an unwarranted incident or accident with China.” Sum total of this exercise is that extreme caution should be exercised in promoting Indo-China relations.