India China Relations

Context:

The External Affairs Minister, in a farewell meeting with Chinese envoy Sun Weidong, emphasised mutual “respect, sensitivity and interest”.

Relevance:

GS Paper 2: India and its Neighbourhood (relations)

Dimensions of the Article:

1. Key Points
2. Indo-China Border
3. Major irritants of India china relations:
4. Cooperation between India and China:

India emphasisied that the development of India-China relations is guided by the 3 Mutuals. Peace and tranquillity in the border areas is essential. The normalisation of India-China relations is in the interest of both countries, of Asia and the world at large.

Indo-China Border:

The Sino-Indian border is generally divided into three sectors namely:

1. The Western sector,
2. The Middle sector, and
3. The Eastern sector.

1. The western sector: it is around 2152 km long. It is between Jammu and Kashmir and Xinjian province of China.
   • Aksai chin: The Johnson’s line shows Aksai chin under India control while McDonald’s line shows it under China’s control.
2. The middle sector: it is 625km long. It runs along the watershed from Ladakh to Nepal.
3. The eastern sector: it is around 1140 km long. It was demarked by Henry Mc Mohan in 1913-14 under Shimla accord. China consider Mc Mohan line as illegal and unacceptable because during Shimla accord, Tibet was not a part of China.

Major irritants of India china relations:

The Dalai Lama and Tibet:

• The Dalai Lama formed a Tibetan government in exile, which still functions without any real authority over the people. But it was opposed by China.

Arunachal Pradesh and Stapled Visa:

• China began the practice of issuing stapled visa to residents of Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

String of pearls:

• China has an undeclared policy of String of Pearls to encircle India. This involves building of ports and naval bases around India’s maritime reaches.
• China is present at Cocos Island in Myanmar, Chittagong in Bangladesh, Hambantota (Sri Lanka), Marao Atoll (Maldives) and Gwadar (Pakistan). Interestingly, China is the only other country than India to have a fully functional embassy in Male.

River Water Dispute:

• Brahmaputra River water sharing is the major flashpoint between India and China. China has been building dams (Jiexu, Zangmu and Jiacha) in the upper reaches of the Brahmaputra which is called Tsangpo in Tibet.

China Pakistan Economic Corridor:

• India considers building of the CPEC as China’s interference in India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. But China has not deterred from going ahead.

Trade imbalance:

• While China is India’s largest trade partner, concerns about trade imbalance between the two countries remain, with the imbalance skewed in China’s favour. India’s trade deficit with China is around $56 billion.

Cooperation between India and China:

• Both are members of the BRICS grouping of emerging economies, which is now establishing a formal lending arm, the New Development Bank.
• India also was a founding member of the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
• The two sides are ready to continue cooperation under the framework of Shanghai Cooperation Organization. China welcomed India’s full membership of Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
• China and India have similar stand during WTO negotiations. In the Doha Round of World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiation, India and China coordinated their stands on several issues.
• The two sides support a comprehensive reform of the United Nations, including recognizing the imperative of increased participation of developing countries in UN’s affairs and governance structures, so as to bring more effectiveness to the UN.
• India and China are member of G-20 grouping.

-Source: The Hindu