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Tensions mount on Chinese-Indian border
Matt Wade, Delhi
August 14, 2009
A stand-off between India and China over a little-known region of the Himalayas has escalated, straining ties between the Asian giants.
China lays claim to much of Arunachal Pradesh, a mountainous Indian province on the country's north-eastern extremity. Analysts in Delhi warn that tensions in the remote region are rising.
''India-China border tensions have escalated in recent months,'' says Brahma Chellaney, professor of strategic studies at Delhi's Centre for Policy Research. ''Things are getting really intense and, from the Indian perspective, outrageous.''
Aggressive patrolling by China, including incursions into Indian territory, has forced India to bolster its presence along the 3500-kilometre border.
Representatives from the two governments held inconclusive talks about the disputed border in Delhi last week.
A day after those talks, India's foreign policy establishment was rattled by reports a think tank linked to the Chinese military had called for India to be split into 30 independent states.
The paper said that if China ''takes a little action, the so-called great Indian federation can be broken up'', which it suggested would be in China's interests. Countries friendly to China, such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, could help ''different nationalities'' such as Tamils and Kashmiris establish independent nation-states.
The Indian Government took the article so seriously it issued a statement saying the two countries had agreed to ''resolve outstanding issues, including the boundary question, through peaceful dialogue and consultations, and with mutual sensitivity to each other's concerns''.
Delhi also cautioned that ''opinions and assessment on the state of India-China relations should be expressed after careful judgment based on the long-term interests of building a stable relationship between the two countries''.
Feathers were ruffled in Delhi last weekend when Google satellite maps showed the names of several towns in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in Mandarin and not English or Hindi, making it appear as if the region was part of China.
Hackles were also raised two months ago when Beijing objected to a $US60 million Asian Development Bank loan to India for a project in the territory which China claims.
The disputed border follows the ''McMahon Line'' drawn up in 1914 when the British ruled India. Beijing does not recognise this demarcation and claims a large portion of territory on the Indian side, including the town of Tawang, the birthplace of the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
In June, the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, J. J. Singh, said up to 30,000 new troops would be deployed in the region. Also in June, a state-run newspaper in China accused India of ''unwise military moves'' along the border. The article said India's response was ''dangerous if it is based on a false anticipation that China will cave in''.
Professor Chellaney says the tensions are ominous. ''Any doubts that the Indian foreign policy establishment might have had about the threat posed by China have evaporated in recent months, that's for sure,'' he says.
Tensions mount on Chinese-Indian border
Matt Wade, Delhi
August 14, 2009
A stand-off between India and China over a little-known region of the Himalayas has escalated, straining ties between the Asian giants.
China lays claim to much of Arunachal Pradesh, a mountainous Indian province on the country's north-eastern extremity. Analysts in Delhi warn that tensions in the remote region are rising.
''India-China border tensions have escalated in recent months,'' says Brahma Chellaney, professor of strategic studies at Delhi's Centre for Policy Research. ''Things are getting really intense and, from the Indian perspective, outrageous.''
Aggressive patrolling by China, including incursions into Indian territory, has forced India to bolster its presence along the 3500-kilometre border.
Representatives from the two governments held inconclusive talks about the disputed border in Delhi last week.
A day after those talks, India's foreign policy establishment was rattled by reports a think tank linked to the Chinese military had called for India to be split into 30 independent states.
The paper said that if China ''takes a little action, the so-called great Indian federation can be broken up'', which it suggested would be in China's interests. Countries friendly to China, such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, could help ''different nationalities'' such as Tamils and Kashmiris establish independent nation-states.
The Indian Government took the article so seriously it issued a statement saying the two countries had agreed to ''resolve outstanding issues, including the boundary question, through peaceful dialogue and consultations, and with mutual sensitivity to each other's concerns''.
Delhi also cautioned that ''opinions and assessment on the state of India-China relations should be expressed after careful judgment based on the long-term interests of building a stable relationship between the two countries''.
Feathers were ruffled in Delhi last weekend when Google satellite maps showed the names of several towns in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in Mandarin and not English or Hindi, making it appear as if the region was part of China.
Hackles were also raised two months ago when Beijing objected to a $US60 million Asian Development Bank loan to India for a project in the territory which China claims.
The disputed border follows the ''McMahon Line'' drawn up in 1914 when the British ruled India. Beijing does not recognise this demarcation and claims a large portion of territory on the Indian side, including the town of Tawang, the birthplace of the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
In June, the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, J. J. Singh, said up to 30,000 new troops would be deployed in the region. Also in June, a state-run newspaper in China accused India of ''unwise military moves'' along the border. The article said India's response was ''dangerous if it is based on a false anticipation that China will cave in''.
Professor Chellaney says the tensions are ominous. ''Any doubts that the Indian foreign policy establishment might have had about the threat posed by China have evaporated in recent months, that's for sure,'' he says.
Tensions mount on Chinese-Indian border
