EditorialChina and India need to seek cooperation, not confrontation
- Neither nation involved in a Himalayan border dispute may want a war, but it is a dangerous game and both would be better off building economic ties
Nationalists in China and India are eager to deflect attention from their countries’ Covid-19 crises. Exploiting such sentiment and sending thousands of soldiers to the disputed border in the Himalayas to face off is not a wise strategy, though. While both governments have adopted measured tones and stressed that talks to resolve the stand-off are under way, the risk of a shot being accidentally fired can never be discounted. Intervention by the United States to criticise Chinese actions and offer mediation are unhelpful; the countries have to swiftly resolve the conflict by themselves as internationalising it only muddies a delicate situation.
Neither China nor India wants a war, as happened along their border in the region in 1962 with humbling consequences for New Delhi. The territorial losses of that conflict continue to hinder relations and more than 20 rounds of talks have failed to find a resolution. While each tries to exert control over claims, competing strategic goals are also at play. Those are at the root of the latest flare-up in Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region on its border with Tibet.
India has been stepping up construction of infrastructure in Ladakh, infuriating Beijing. The building of a road to the country’s northernmost outpost, a military airbase, sparked the dispute, which was where another border stand-off occurred in 2013. Indian officials claim that early last month, Chinese soldiers entered at three points, setting up tents and guard posts and triggering shouting matches, stone-throwing and fist fights when orders to leave were ignored. Beijing contends the area is its territory and both sides have since been building up forces.
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China-India border dispute fuelled by rise in nationalism on both sides
The coronavirus has brought serious challenges for both governments, the economic impact being the biggest. While China largely has the disease under control, India is still struggling with outbreaks. Beijing is also unfairly accused by US President Donald Trump of failing to give timely information about the disease, leading to its global spread. Such politicising of the crisis, even as the US is still battling Covid-19 and is embroiled in race riots and looting, makes American attempts to mediate an opportunistic distraction. Sensibly, New Delhi has waved the offers aside.
But nationalists are calling for a military resolution. That India redrew the region’s maps last year when it created the federally administered Ladakh and included the China-controlled region of Aksai Chin, which connects the sensitive areas of Xinjiang with western Tibet, was obviously inflammatory. China and India were involved in a similar stand-off for 73 days near Bhutan in 2017 and high-level intervention and talks calmed tensions. The same resolve is again needed so that the nations can turn their attention to building economic ties and cooperation.