The two ancient civilizations, India and China, are historically and culturally associated with each other and share common attributes like huge population, rising economy, aspiration to be superpower etc. The relations between the two neighbours, though occasionally interspersed with signs of peace and co-operation, have been afflicted with tension and mistrust. It has undergone dramatic changes over the past few decades. In this write-up, I would like to analyse the various factors influencing the Indo-China conflict.
a) Ambiguous demarcation of the border
The Sino Indian war of 1962 is a very important event in post-independent Indian history. It led to a broader realignment in the international outlook of India and tethered its foreign policy to realism. Following India’s Independence, China felt that the British had left behind a disputed legacy on the boundary between the two newly formed republics. The 3,488-km long border between India and China is not clearly demarcated throughout and there is no mutually agreed Line of Actual Control (LAC). The India-China border is divided into three sectors, viz. Western, Middle and Eastern.
In the Western Sector, the dispute pertains to the Johnson Line proposed by the British in the 1860s that extended up to the Kunlun Mountains and Aksai Chin in the then princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (or the Chinese province of Xinjiang). While China maintains that it has never acceded to the Johnson Line, independent India used the Johnson Line and claimed Aksai Chin as its own.
At the Middle Sector, the dispute is a minor one and is the only shared border India and China have exchanged maps on which they broadly agree.
The dispute in Eastern sector is over the McMahon Line, (formerly referred to as the North-East Frontier Agency, and now called Arunachal Pradesh) which was part of the 1914 Shimla Convention between British India and Tibet, an agreement rejected by China. Till the 1960s, China controlled Aksai Chin in the West while India controlled the boundary up to the McMahon Line in the East. In 1960, based on an agreement between Nehru and Zhou Enlai, Chinese leader, discussions held by Indian and Chinese officials in order to settle the boundary dispute and demarcate the boundary on land failed due to differences in perception. The 1962 Sino-Indian War was fought in both of these areas as an outcome of these differences. China had unilaterally declared a ceasefire from 20th Nov 1962 after a month-long war which began on October 20, 1962 with Chinese invasion. India suffered a huge setback and was badly defeated after ceding about 43,000 square kilometres of land in Aksai Chin to China. Thus, China achieved its objective of acquiring control in Aksai chin. In the eastern sector, their troops went back to the north of the McMahon line. The defeat embarrassed India internationally and forced India to come out of its idealism in foreign policies.
The next border tension which developed into a crisis of concern was the Doklam standoff in the summer of 2017. Much had changed since 1962 for India and China and this time, in spite of a propaganda blitzkrieg and other intimidating tactics adopted by China, India had stood its ground. Although India is not a party to the Doklam dispute which is between China and the tiny Himalayan country of Bhutan, China’s forcible occupation of the area was perceived to threaten India’s security. Doklam is critical, as the occupation of it would allow the Chinese troops to enter India through the Siliguri Corridor or “chicken’s neck” that links the north-eastern states to the rest of India. China’s decision to enter Doklam was interpreted as a premeditated move to alter the status quo that had prevailed for decades. China was surprised by India’s tough posture. Eventually, after tense negotiations, both sides withdrew from the sensitive area, thus diffusing what could have led to an ugly conflict. The contentious border issues once again became the flashpoint of a military skirmish at Galwan Valley on 15 June 2020, growing into a standoff the world is watching with wary. And both sides are trying to avoid escalation into war.
b) The Tibetan dilemma
Tibet's geostrategic setting itself is at the heart of Sino-China conflict. China annexed Tibet in 1950, which after waves of genocide since the 1950s, now faces ecocide. Post annexation, China became immediate neighbours of India, Nepal and Bhutan, which traditionally did not have a border with India. India opposed this annexation which China termed as illegal interference in its internal affairs. China was also enraged at India's grant of political asylum to the Dalai Lama. India also sees the network of airstrips and airbases that China has built throughout the Tibetan plateau as a potential for providing the logistical wherewithal for a Chinese invasion across the border. Both countries have so far held 20 rounds of talks to settle the disputes, but unfortunately, an acceptable solution has eluded them. To the credit of both sides, they have not allowed the situation to go out of control and escalate into full-blown warfare which shall be immensely harmful to both the countries armed with nuclear arsenals. The latest reminder of the Tibetan dilemma came when President Xi Jinping ordered Chinese military incursions across the Indo-Tibetan border prior to his India visit in September 2019. Put off by the intrusions, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government permitted Tibetan exiles to stage protests during Xi’s New Delhi stay, reversing a pattern since the early 1990s of such protests being foiled by police during the visit of any Chinese leader.
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| Source Unsplash By chuttersnap |
c) River water sharing
Brahmaputra River water sharing is another major flashpoint between Indian and China. China has been building dams after dams in the upper reaches of the Brahmaputra, which is called Tsangpo in Tibet. India has objected to this but there has been no formal treaty over sharing of the Brahmaputra water. Chinese efforts to divert the water resources of the Brahmaputra River away from India will worsen the situation that has remained tense since the 1962 Indo-China war.
d) Indo Pacific Region
China opposes India’s oil exploration in the South China Sea by calling the area of exploration a 'disputed' area and asserting 'Chinese sovereignty over the South China Sea in the historical context. India has taken note of the Chinese reservation and has carefully gone ahead in signing a few agreements with Vietnam for oil exploration in the South China Sea. Chinese ambitions of control in the Indo Pacific region has driven alliances like Quad [ Quadrilateral Security Dialogue] to curtail the expansionist policies of China.
e) Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh was recently claimed to be a part of South Tibet region by the Global Times, a Chinese state-run daily. China refuses to recognize Arunachal Pradesh as a part of India. China at many instances issue stapled visa to the residents of Arunachal Pradesh because China thinks that issuing a proper visa would tantamount to recognizing India's sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh but the Indian position is that the issuance of a stapled visa dilute India's claim that Arunachal Pradesh is an Indian territory. It has become a constant flashpoint and recently a trend has emerged that clashes take place just before the start of a major dialogue between them.
In case of conflicts, both the countries should restrain themselves to prevent imminent major destruction and loss of life. China is well aware of India's potential and will never want to wage a war that can damage its resources and tarnish its reputation. Neither can India afford a war now. Both countries should make concerted efforts toward arriving at a solution at the diplomatic level so that military conflicts can be avoided. Cooperation between India and China will have multi-dimensional benefits for both sides in the geopolitical, geo-economic and geo-strategic spheres and shall be progressive for the future of Asia and the world.
WRITTEN BY SHUBHI SANJALI
REFERENCES:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53062484
https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2020/07/09/an-argument-on-sino-india-conflict/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-53062484
https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2020/07/09/an-argument-on-sino-india-conflict/
https://www.reckontalk.com/why-china-claims-arunachal-pradesh-india-china-border-dispute/
https://tibetpolicy.net/brahmaputra-river-an-eternal-conflict-between-india-and-china/
https://www.c3sindia.org/defence-security/india-china-u-s-relations-in-the-indo-pacific-region-by-soorya-s/
https://www.wsj.com/articles/india-china-himalaya-border-conflict-11592329619
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