India’s armed forces set up ‘think tank cells’ to study China

[Bhai Zakir]

India’s armed forces set up ‘think tank cells’ to study China


India’s armed forces, the world’s third largest active military, have set up “China cells” tasked to develop a better understanding of the country’s northeastern neighbour as a new round of border talks have failed to find a lasting solution to the two countries’ territorial dispute in the Himalayas.

A team of army officers has been tasked “to keep tabs on China’s growing capabilities, dig into the heart of its strategic mindset and predict its impact on national security,” the Hindustan Times, a New Delhi-based daily newspaper, said on Monday, citing a military source.

The team has been put together by Chief of Army Staff General Bikram Singh, the armed forces’ highest ranking officer, the report said. The unnamed source emphasised that the move wasn’t aimed at meddling into India’s civilian foreign affairs policy and described the cells as the army’s “in-house think tanks”.

Cells are to be set up in three of the country’s six regional command headquarters. The team at the Kolkata-based Eastern Command will be headed by a one-star general, the report said.


Last week, China’s State Councillor Yang Jiechi and India’s National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon met in New Delhi for the 17th round of talks on finding a solution to the border dispute which led to a short war in 1962 and sparked a three-week-long stand-off last year.

China claims more than 90,000 square kilometres in the eastern Himalayas, while India says China occupies 38,000 square kilometres of its territory on the Aksai Chin plateau in the west.

It was the first meeting since the two countries signed an agreement aimed at preventing further stand-offs during a state visit by outgoing Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last year.

For Dibyesh Anand, head of the department of politics and international relations at London's Westminster University, the timing of the report is not unintended.

"The Indian and Chinese military both see the dispute as useful justification for their own growth and relevance," he said. "China is being represented as the main enemy in order to justify a high military budget."

Ni Lengxiong, a Shanghai-based military diplomacy expert, told the South China Morning Post that India’s move reflected a growing awareness of the strengthening of China’s military since President Xi Jinping rose to power in 2012.


Both countries already have good intelligence on each other, said Brahma Chellaney, a professor of strategic studies at Center for Policy Research, a New Delhi-based think tank. "China uses its deep pockets for gaining intelligence, while India relies on friendly sources," he said adding that satellite reconnaissance is also central to their intelligence.

For Chellaney, an imminent confrontation is unlikely. "After the spate of Chinese incursions last year, China’s border with India is currently quiet for two reasons," he said. "It is icy cold there, with snow blocking mountain passes; and Beijing’s diplomatic offensive against Japan leaves it little space to ratchet up tensions with India."

Shanghai-based Ni also said he considered further stand-offs with India very unlikely, but he cautioned that unplanned incidents could heighten tensions yet again. “The leadership in both countries must prevent such spontaneous confrontations from happening,” he said.

The leadership in both countries must prevent spontaneous confrontations from happening Ni Lengxiong India’s closer ties with Japan have been watched closely in China, said Ni. In January, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended India’s Republic Day parade as guest of honour. Earlier in the month, Japan’s Defence Minister visited New Delhi to discuss defence cooperation including the sale of a Japan-made amphibious aircraft, making India the first country since the second world war to buy a military aircraft from Japan.

On Tuesday, Mamnoon Hussain, the new president of India’s arch-rival Pakistan, is set to arrive in China for his maiden state visit to his country’s largest trading partner.

In an interview with the Xinhua news agency, Hussain said he would push for an earlier realisation of the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor, a series of infrastructure projects that could provide China with economic and military access, via Pakistan to the Gulf and crossing through territory claimed by India.

India’s armed forces set up ‘think tank cells’ to study China | South China Morning Post

 

[Genesis]

Good call, more understanding less incidents. But I can't believe it wasn't there before, the war of 1962, happened, well in 1962, this is 2014. lol, better late than never.

 

[Bhai Zakir]

Good call, more understanding less incidents. But I can't believe it wasn't there before, the war of 1962, happened, well in 1962, this is 2014. lol, better late than never.

We already have hundreds of think tanks many as an NGO, Department in the universities etc. But, this one is made in the army itself.

- Cells are to be set up in three of the country’s six regional command headquarters.

- The team at the Kolkata-based Eastern Command will be headed by a one-star general.

 

[dray]

Very good move, much needed.

 

[kurup]

‘Army’s China cells could sow seeds of mistrust’



The new China cells set up by the Indian military could help broaden New Delhi’s strategic vision about its neighbour but could also plant seeds of mistrust if their mandate was to solely work against the Chinese military, analysts have told the state media.

Reacting to a report in the Hindustan Times about the Indian military setting up China-focused cells, Fu Xiaoqiang, an expert on South Asian studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said it revealed that India had identified China as a strategic rival.

The state-run China Daily newspaper quoted him as saying that accurate information collected by the cells could aid the political leadership in India to make right decisions. “But it also shows that the Indian army has clearly identified China as a real strategic rival,” he added.

Ma Jun, a researcher on Indian studies with the Military Science Academy of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, indicated that the influence of the cells — on military to military as well as broad bilateral relationship — boils down to the mandate of the cells.

“If the purpose of ‘China cells’ is to handle the disagreements in a better way, they will play a positive role in bilateral relations; but if their goal is to monitor the Chinese army in the region and work against Chinese forces, they are likely to generate further distrust between the two countries,” Ma said.

The militaries of the two countries have been involved in a number of stand-offs along the long and disputed border in recent times. Wan Wei, an India expert at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies, said the opinion of those manning the cells could influence on India’s strategic issues.

Defence News - ‘Army’s China cells could sow seeds of mistrust’

 

[kurup]

Indian Army’s plan for think-tanks on China draws Chinese response

Indian Army’s reported plan to set up think-tanks focussing on China has evoked mixed reactions among scholars here with some calling it a positive move and others saying it showed that Indian security forces have identified the PLA as a “real strategic rival”.”Accurate information collected by the military think- tanks may help the Indian leadership to make the right decisions,” Fu Xiaoqiang, a research fellow at the South Asian studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations said.

“It also shows that the Indian army has clearly identified China as a real strategic rival,” Fu told state-run China Daily which highlighted reports from New Delhi about Indian Army setting up China focussed think-tanks.

Ma Jun, a military expert here said the move focussing on China shows that India wants to gain a more in-depth understanding of China’s strategic thinking on border disputes and ongoing infrastructure projects in the region.

“If the purpose of ‘China cells’ is to handle the disagreements in a better way, they will play a positive role in bilateral relations; but if their goal is to monitor the Chinese army in the region and work against Chinese forces, they are likely to generate further distrust between the two countries,” Ma, who is a researcher on Indian studies with the Military Science Academy of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said.

Wan Wei, a researcher at the Chinese Association for South Asian Studies, said the new think-tanks could help improve the Indian military’s influence on national strategic issues.

“For a long time, military opinions were not highly valued by the Indian leadership. The ‘China cells’ are a way to promote the voices of the military on issues of national interest,” Wan said. Military exchanges can help to enhance mutual trust and ease tensions between countries, he said, adding that China also needs to enhance the capacity of military think-tanks to gain a better understanding of other countries.

Indian Army’s plan for think-tanks on China draws Chinese response | idrw.org

 

[Developereo]

“But it also shows that the Indian army has clearly identified China as a real strategic rival,” he added.

The recent Indian military acquisitions weren't a clue?

 

[cirr]

Time to learn Chinese。