India-China Relations

[Pintu]

China refutes reports of border incursions for second time - China - World - NEWS - The Times of India

China refutes reports of border incursions for second time
Saibal Dasgupta, TNN 8 September 2009, 07:50pm IST

BEIJING: The Chinese foreign ministry on Tuesday said it wanted to make joint efforts with India to maintain peace and tranquility along the border. The ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu brushed aside reports in the Indian media about Chinese troops entering the border in Ladakh and painting the rocks and boulders red.

The ministry has taken note of certain reports in the Indian media about alleged incursions by Chinese troops, she said.

"These reports are groundless and untrue," she said in reply to a question during the ministry's regular media briefing. Chinese border patrols are carried out "strictly according to the law," she said.

This is the second time in a little over a week that the Chinese foreign ministry is coming out with similar clarification on the issue.

"China and India should make joint efforts to maintain peace and tranquility on the border," she said.

Asked to comment about the Indian government's decision to detain an aircraft from United Arab Emirates found to be carrying arms to Xinjiang in China, the spokeswoman said she had no information about the issue.

 

[RPK]

India says intrusions along LAC common from both sides - Tibetan Review

The Army and the government of India have reacted differently to the recent reports of rising and more serious border incursions by Chinese troops, with the former expressing concern and seeking to raise the issue and the latter calling the development a non-issue, according to the Times of India newspaper Sep 7. While Army officials admitted that Chinese soldiers ventured into India and promised to take up the matter, the foreign ministry stated that this wasn't an issue at all and that India and China shared "one of the most peaceful" borders, the report said.

"There is a built-in mechanism which is in place and which takes care of such incursions. With China, I think the boundary has been one of the most peaceful. So, there is no issue on that. There is no problem on that," the report quoted India’s Foreign minister SM Krishna as saying. The report noted that India had so far acted with restraint maintaining that the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China was not very well defined and that the Chinese didn't share India's perception of the border.

While this was the position of India’s foreign ministry, India Today online Sep 7 said the country’s Cabinet Committee on Security on Sep 7 discussed the repeated border incursions by Chinese forces. The report said the CCS meeting expressed concern over the diplomatic and political fallouts of the news of incursions filtering out into the media.

On the other hand, the report cited India’s Defence sources as saying the matter will be taken up with the Chinese authorities. In particular, it cited a senior Army official as saying that though the Chinese used to leave behind signs of incursions in the past too, this was the first time they had painted "China" over rocks with red spray paint. The report also cited India’s Army chief, General Deepak Kapoor, has saying India had lodged a strong protest with the Chinese authorities on the issue of the Jun 21 incursion of a helicopter into Indian territory, which took place in the Chumar area of Ladakh.

Also, the Indian Army’s Northern commander, Lt Gen PC Bhardwaj was to visit the Leh-based 14 Corps headquarters over the next few days to verify reports of Chinese incursion in the Ladakh area, reported the ANI news service Sep 7. Besides, the India Today report said India’s Army Chief, Gen Deepak Kapoor, was all set to visit eastern and northern Ladakh on September 10-11 to take stock of the situation.

On the other hand, Zee News online Sep 7 cited the Indian Army as saying Sep 7 that there was "nothing unusual" about the Chinese Army incursions, noting that they happen regularly. “But the Army takes these up with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) at the regular Border Personnel meetings," it quoted sources in the Army headquarters as saying. It further cited the Indian Army as saying the incursions happened, primarily due to "differing perception" of the LAC between the two countries.

"Whenever troops from either side patrol the LAC, they do leave behind telltale signs of their presence in the areas they move about. These signs include items such as used cigarette packets, newspaper copies and at time shoes made in the respective countries," the Army was further quoted as saying.

And the Hindustan Times Sep 7 cited India’s Defence Ministry as saying border intrusions were common from both the sides of the border due to their different perceptions of the LAC. “This is due to the absence of a well defined border. We also go up to the LAC as we perceive it to be,” it quoted an unnamed official there as saying.

China is, however, categorical that there had never been any incursion. “Reports of any incursion into India are groundless and based on incidents which never happened.” The report quoted the Chinese Foreign Ministry as saying. “We will seek a friendly solution to the issue through negotiations.”

Whatever may be the case, India’s opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sep 7 called the reported intrusions a matter of grave concern and demanded that New Delhi lodge a protest with China

 

[Soham]

AFAIK PLA is more level headed than the CPC.
Personally, I find it hard to believe that PLA would take any rash action and that too against the will of CPC.

SM Krishna and Nirupama Rao are experts on China and I will give the the benefit of the doubt for the moment.

Full agreement with this one.
I severely doubt the coming up of "hardline" PLA officers to order such adventures.

 

[RPK]

Himachal cops step up security along China border

Shimla: Security has been strengthened along the international border in Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts following reports of Chinese incursions into the Ladakh sector of Jammu and Kashmir, police officials said Wednesday.

"Security has been stepped up along the border after the reports of intrusion of Chinese troops in the Ladakh sector," Additional Superintendent of Police (Lahaul and Spiti) SR Rana said on phone.

Special police forces have been deployed at the last checkpost at Sumdoh in Spiti subdivision, he said. Sumdoh is located on the border of Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts.

Superintendent of Police (Kinnaur) Yashbir Singh Pathania said: "The ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) and the army are manning the international border. We have stepped up security in the villages located along the border."


Sources in the ITBP said the paramilitary force has also strengthened its checkposts at Chitkul, the last Indian village on the border, and Namgya near Khab in Pooh subdivision.

When asked for a response, an ITBP commandant refused to comment.

"I am not authorised to speak to the media," he replied.

Himachal Pradesh shares a 200 km border with China

 

[Singh]

I am beginning to wonder- and this is a question to the MP's : what of the viability of the 'counter-incursion' as a retaliatory measure? They cross over into our borders, we (not immediately thereafter but sometime later) cross over into theirs. Should they drop "food-packets" into a square mile within out territory, we drop pamphlets proclaiming the virtues of democracy (in Chinese ofcourse) in theirs. (Or alternatively non-melamine filled milk or non-cardboard made childrens' glucose biscuits).

They claim contending legitimacy over Arun'aachal Pradesh, while we have a claim to sovereignty over Chinese-occupied-Kashmir. So any incursion into AP could be reciprocated with a delayed, countering incursion into Aksai Chin. Our military presence in the region exceeds theirs in any case. And if they fired at our troops, they will have established the precedent. Ergo the next time they cross over 'inadvertently' into our territory, there will be justifiably, no mercy.

The intent of the Chinese incursions is more symbolic then anything else.
I wonder if the Chinese would've dare to intrude if India had adopted an aggressive stance towards Pakistani infiltration.

If I remember reading Lemontree Sir's post in WAB, Chinese have some historical basis in claiming Arunachal Pradesh, so our counter-incursion and conflict would put the Chinese in the driver's seat.

A better and more reasonable counter would be to arrest those who crossover, distribute their pictures to the media and urge the Chinese to show restraint and reach a quick settlement on border issues.
This will show that India is a peace loving country, who realises that both have different perceptions of LAC and it is China that is acting hastily and irresponsibly.

 

[RPK]

'Don't create alarm over Chinese raid'- Politics/Nation-News-The Economic Times

NEW DELHI: After the Army admitted to Chinese incursions, external affairs minister S M Krishna cautioned against creating “excessive alarm” and
maintained that India was closely monitoring the border with China.

“We have been monitoring the Chinese build-up along Arunachal Pradesh and elsewhere. Our defence preparedness is a continuing process,” Mr Krishna told a TV channel.

The external affairs minister has continued to downplay the incursions by Chinese troops into India after the Army admitted that incursions from the Chinese side had taken place. The matter is now set to be taken up with the Chinese in the next flag meeting between the two countries. “I would like to emphasise that there is an established mechanism to deal with such situations. Both sides have agreed that pending the resolution of the border issue, peace and tranquillity must be maintained on the LAC,” the external affairs minister said at the Editors Guild meeting.

He further assured that India’s border with China remained secure. “India is monitoring the situation constantly and there can and will be no lowering of our defences in this regard. Our borders are secure and it serves no purpose to create excessive alarm,” he said.

Sources said that it was important to look at the incursions in a “practical manner” considering the length of the border India shares with China. The government has continued to highlight the fact that India’s border with China is one of the most peaceful boundaries compared to the boundary lines with other countries.

Indian Army Chief Deepak Kapoor had last month admitted that Chinese helicopters had violated Indian airspace along the Line of Actual Control in Leh.

 

[RPK]

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Frontpage | China makes ‘inroads’

New Delhi, Sept. 10: China has built roads well into India’s territory at a time Indian road construction to the Line of Actual Control (LAC), particularly in Arunachal Pradesh, is caught in red tape.

Beijing has constructed motorable roads running parallel to the LAC and has paved approach roads into Arunachal Pradesh, Indian sources have disclosed, elevating the nature of alleged transgressions from the usual incursions to building infrastructure.

“What we call Indian territory is different from what their perception of the LAC is. While our patrol forces (Indo-Tibetan Border Police or (ITBP)) have to walk days to reach the LAC, China has roads till what they perceive is the LAC,” a senior home ministry official told The Telegraph.

By the time India constructs roads reaching the LAC, the character of the actual line would have changed irreversibly, it is feared. China does not recognise the LAC or McMahon Line of 1914.

The patrols play a seemingly childish but psychologically important role in establishing territorial rights — much like the kings of the wild that mark out their spheres of influence by urinating.

The patrol parties use stuff less organic than body fluids — troops from both sides are known to leave along the LAC telltale articles identifiable with each other’s country. Favourite with Indian forces are Dalda cans and cigarette packs which Chinese troops painstakingly remove from what Beijing feels is its territory.

“With approach roads on their (Chinese) side and the absence of them on our side, their patrolling parties have more opportunities to collect the stuff and dump it back on what they perceive as the LAC,” said an official.

The marking-out ritual was stepped up in July by Chinese troops who apparently sprayed paint to scrawl “China” on boulders in Ladakh — something the Chinese foreign ministry has denied since.

An Indian China study group made of secretaries from the home, external affairs and defence ministries, besides the heads of the intelligence wings, had also recently recommended that roads be built fast.

Delhi has maintained a stoic silence, sheepishly conceding but publicly denying the existence of any problem.

In reality, however, the fault lies in the slow pace in the movement of files in the government.

Of the 27 roads being constructed to the Chinese border, 11 are in Arunachal Pradesh and they need clearance from the environment and forest ministry. For years, the files kept trudging through the slow corridors.

Four roads were cleared eventually, the number going up to nine recently. Clearances for the remaining two are still pending.

The recent clearances for the five roads came after the home ministry approached the empowered group of secretaries on border roads and sought waivers in view of “national security”, sources said.

According to official sources, work is in progress on 10 border roads meant to cover 196km. Here, 40.08km of formation work and 5.40km of surfacing work has been completed.

To showcase the recent headway, home minister P. Chidambaram had announced that work on the Phorbrank-Chartse-Point 4433 road had been cleared by the Supreme Court.

However, Chidambaram conceded on September 1 that although the pace of road construction to the Chinese border had picked up substantially, some distance still needed to be covered. The bulk of the problems of infrastructure lies in Arunachal Pradesh which China claims is its territory.

 

[RPK]

China - The Big Boss

China’s recent helicopter incursions into Indian airspace in Leh and then the violation of the International Border in Ladakh region have left New Delhi at the receiving end of Beijing’s augmenting hostility.


While the Indian External Affairs Ministry has refuted reports of Chinese incursions by describing the border shared with China as “one of the most peaceful”, the Army has admitted that Chinese soldiers did enter India territory in Ladakh. China, on its part, has described the incursion reports as “untrue” and “groundless”.

According to reports in the Indian media, Chinese troops crossed over into India's territory in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ladakh region. Reports further claimed that the Chinese troops marked boulders and rocks as deep as 1.5 km inside India’s border with red spray paint.

It is not for the first time that reports of Chinese incursions into Indian territory have emerged. As per reports, the Indian Army logged 270 border violations and about 2,300 cases of “aggressive border patrolling” by Chinese soldiers in 2008.

What is India doing about it? Literally nothing! Not even a single strong comment from the government has followed any of the Chinese incursions. In fact, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna wants to use the option of “standard mechanism” while handling such cases of Chinese incursions. But the question is: Why a “standard mechanism” to deal with such high-priority security issue?

India and China share approximately 3,200-kilometer border in the Himalayas.

China sees India as a competitor, or probably as a threat. Without doubt, China wants India’s rise as an economic power and an influential player in South Asia to subside, by keeping it busy with the problems emanating from its neighbourhood.

Were the recent intrusions intended at conveying any message to India, or China’s show of might?

China has emerged strongly as far as military might is concerned. Its economic rise has left every other country on this planet breathless. In fact, the US’ Asia policy revolves around China. But what is India doing to match up with this Dragon called China? Today, Beijing has not only knocked at the doors, but also established its hold in all the continents, while India continues to lag far behind.

China has even started entering US strongholds such as Saudi Arabia, while India has let its diplomatic manoeuvring wane.

According to former Indian Navy Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta, the power gap between India and China “is just too wide to bridge and is getting wider by the day”.

Mehta further noted, “China is in the process of consolidating its comprehensive national power and creating formidable military capabilities. Once it is done, China is likely to be more assertive on its claims, especially in the immediate neighbourhood.”

The Navy Chief’s statement should have been taken very seriously, but it seems New Delhi has not heeded to it carefully.

If one observes it closely, the militarily strong China now follows a defined and assessed policy of intensifying diplomatic and military pressure on India by adopting a hard line on the border issue.

At first, China seemed to be yielding its claim on parts of India's Northeast in exchange for Indian recognition of Beijing’s control over a part of Ladakh. Then it became more interested in bilateral ties. And then it increased its military incursions while aggressively laying claim to Arunachal Pradesh.

According to sources, China not only keeps a tab on the developments going on in Arunachal Pradesh, but also criticises them in its commentaries.

Furthermore, talks between India and China over territorial disputes over a long period of time have continued to be futile. Grabbing the advantage, China is continuing to influence the Himalayan balance in its favour.

By constructing new railroads and highways in Tibet, China has gained strategic depth. Beijing can now swiftly locate its troops at the border and target India easily. While India finds border with China as the “most peaceful”!

If India fails to take concrete steps to take stock of China’s intrusions and deters them, the so-called aggressive ‘Big Boss’ in the international affairs will pose a greater threat in the near future.

 

[RPK]

Chinese paper accuses Indian media of engaging in war rhetoric

Beijing: Amid reports of Chinese military intrusions into India, a leading state-run Chinese newspaper on Thursday accused the Indian media of trying to present a "bleak picture" of the Sino-India relations by raising "war rhetoric" and sowing "seeds of enmity" between the two countries.

"If you are a regular reader of reports in the Indian media, you can be excused for thinking a war is imminent between India and China. For the past few months, the Indian media have been trying to fan passions on both sides," the 'China Daily' said in a editorial.


"Instead of informing, inspiring and trying to find the truth, it is trying to throttle professional ethics to raise the war rhetoric and sow seeds of enmity between the two peoples," the paper said.

The editorial came two days after Beijing officially denied reports that its border guards had intruded into Ladakh in India and painted boulders and rocks red there.

"A bleak picture of Sino-India relations - which is farthest from reality - is what a section of the Indian media wants to present to its readers," the paper charged noting that some "alarmists even predicted China will attack India by 2012" to divert the attention of its people from "unprecedented" internal dissent, growing unemployment and financial problems.

At the same time, the leading English-language daily also acknowledged that a section of the Chinese media has also behaved irresponsibly.

 

[RPK]

Dragon's war dance - dnaindia.com

The 32-day surprise Chinese invasion in 1962 lasted longer than the 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan and claimed the lives of more Indian soldiers than any other aggression faced by India since Independence, with the exception of 1971.

Yet the myth still being peddled internationally is that 1962 was a brief war. Today, as Chinese cross-frontier incursions grow and border tensions rise, the situation is becoming similar to the one that prevailed in the run-up to 1962. The several parallels raise the spectre of another Chinese attack.

First, like in the pre-1962 period, it has become commonplace internationally to speak of India and China in the same breadth. The aim of "Mao's India war", as Harvard scholar Roderick MacFarquhar has called it, was largely political: To cut India to size by demolishing what it represented -- a democratic alternative to the Chinese autocracy.

The brute force with which Mao Zedong humiliated India helped discredit the Indian model, boost China's international image and consolidate Mao's internal power. The return of the China-India pairing decades later is something Beijing viscerally loathes.

Second, the Dalai Lama's flight to India in 1959 -- and the ready sanctuary he got here -- paved the way for the Chinese military attack. Today, 50 years after his escape, the exiled Tibetan leader stands as a bigger challenge than ever for China, as underscored by Beijing's stepped-up vilification campaign against him.

With Beijing now treating the Dalai Lama as its Enemy No 1, India has come under greater Chinese pressure to curb his activities and those of his government-in-exile. The continuing security clampdown in Tibet since the March 2008 Tibetan uprising parallels the harsh Chinese crackdown in Tibet during 1959-62.

Three, the present pattern of cross-frontier incursions and other border incidents, as well as new force deployments and mutual recriminations, is redolent of the situation that prevailed before the 1962 war. According to the Indian army chief, "This year, there were 21 incursions in June, 20 in July and 24 in August."

Such is the rising graph of Chinese cross-border forays that such intrusions nearly doubled in two years, from 140 in 2006 to 270 in 2008. Little surprise the defence minister warned as early as April 2008 that there is "no room for complacency" along the Himalayan frontier.

Four, the 1962 invasion occurred against the backdrop of China instigating and arming insurgents in India's northeast. Although such activities ceased after Mao's death in 1976, China seems to be coming full circle today, with Chinese-made arms increasingly flowing into guerrilla ranks in northeastern India, including via Burma.

India has taken up this matter with Beijing at the foreign minister-level. Indeed, Pakistan-based terrorists targeting India now rely on Chinese arms -- from the AK-56 assault rifles to the Type 86 grenades made by China's state-owned Norinco firm. To add to India's woes, Beijing has blocked efforts to get the United Nations to designate as a terrorist the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammad group chief, Masood Azhar.

Five, then-prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru's slogan, "Hindi-Chini bhai bhai" (Indians and Chinese are brothers), is today matched by the "Chindia" concept, which -- disregarding the rivalry and antagonisms -- blends the two Asian giants together.

Sixth, just as India had retreated to a defensive position in the border negotiations with Beijing in the early 1960s after having undermined its leverage by accepting the 'Tibet region of China' through the 1954 Panchsheel Agreement, New Delhi similarly has been left in the unenviable position today of having to fend off Chinese territorial demands.

Whatever leverage India still had on the Tibet issue was surrendered in 2003 when it shifted its position from Tibet being an 'autonomous' region within China to it being 'part of the territory of the People's Republic of China'. Little surprise, the spotlight now is on China's Tibet-linked claim to Arunachal Pradesh than on Tibet's status itself.

That explains why Beijing invested so much political capital over the years in getting India to gradually accept Tibet as part of China. Its success on that score narrows the dispute to what it claims today. The issue in 1962 was Aksai Chin; the issue now is Arunachal, particularly Tawang.

But had Beijing really believed Tawang was part of Tibet and hence belonged to China, the Chinese military would have held on to that critical corridor after its capture in 1962, just as it kept the territorial gains of that war in Ladakh.

With India in serious danger of sliding into a 1962-type dragon trap, the country needs high-quality statecraft to handle the present situation and ensure the nation is not again told what Nehru stated the day China attacked -- that Beijing returned "evil for good".

 

[RPK]

Confucius say India smart, China smarter - dnaindia.com

New Delhi: Managing ties with a rising China will be one of India's biggest foreign policy challenges. The two giants will compete for dominance in Asia and jostle for markets and energy sources beyond.

With its growing economic clout, China's influence will increase. There will be only one Asian giant with its policy of long-term strategic thinking and India's abysmal lack of strategy.

"China has always worked to a coherent strategic gameplan. Every move China makes is with an eye on the next two to three decades,'' says analyst Ajai Sahni. "India has none of this. There is no proper sense of power projection. China is growing and it will consolidate its position everywhere. But India is pulling in five directions. China is everywhere: Africa, West Asia, South Asia, Central Asia and Europe. By the next decade, its presence will be solid. Indian policy planners have not given thought to this.''
India has two options: Either have a pact with another country, like the US, or get ready to take on any challenge from an adventurist China.

But the leaders of India and China are talking of growing together in peace. Though there has been no major progress in talks, the two have ensured peace along the 3,000-km border.

"We will compete in certain spheres, but co-operate on issues affecting developing countries, like climate change and trade,'' says C Uday Bhaskar, former director, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. He says chances of a full-scale war between India and China are remote, unless there is a drastic change in China's leadership.

Also, China fears an India-US line-up against it. Luckily for China, with Barack Obama in power in Washington and because of the economic meltdown, the US is cosying up to it.

 

[RPK]

Claims and counterclaims on Chinese intrusions - dnaindia.com

New Delhi: Is China itching for a military conflict with India? Apparently yes, say some experts, given the recent spurt in alleged incursions into India. No, say the military and diplomatic leaderships of India, denying any change in the largely peaceful ground- level realities between the two Asian giants along their 4,056-km border.

The reasons offered by observers on why China would try to flare up the situation include diverting attention from its domestic troubles and stemming India's aggressive infrastructure developments along the border.

Last year, India cited over 200 intrusions by the Chinese military. "They (the Chinese) too cite similar numbers," says a senior army officer. At every flag meeting, both sides present almost equal numbers of complaints about "intrusions".

An officer at the army headquarters says that both countries have mechanisms to claim territory. "The commonest feature is to send patrols that deliberately leave behind tell-tale marks like scrolling on rocks, and cigarette or food packets."

On the ground, military officers say that there has been no significant change in Chinese attitude. "Over two years ago, we told them at a fairly senior level that their behaviour in the Finger Area (in north Sikkim) and other parts of the Eastern Sector was immature and they must stop sending patrols," a senior army officer says. "They stopped for sometime, but are back."

An army officer says that often when the Chinese patrols come in the Finger Area, Indian soldiers stop them physically but "the situation is never allowed to go out of hand". A few months ago, a small group of Chinese military personnel drove in a jeep and "we stopped them, but that too did not get out of hand". The only recent incident that was "unusual" was in November 2007 when Chinese troops destroyed a couple of unoccupied Indian bunkers.

A senior military officer who has dealt with the Chinese in recent years says: "If there is anything that we don't like about their conduct is their increasingly condescending behaviour at the senior levels, probably due to China's new global status."

Chinese worries are more about the intense media coverage in India of the "intrusions". At a recent flag meeting, a Chinese colonel requested his Indian counterpart to keep the media quiet, citing the quietness of the Chinese media on Indian incursions. "We told them India being a democracy, we can't control the media."

"Otherwise, we have a fairly robust system for maintaining peace and tranquility along the border," says a senior army officer, referring to the Border Peace and Tranquility agreements signed with China in 1993 and 1996.

 

[Yusuf]

to divert the attention of its people from "unprecedented" internal dissent, growing unemployment and financial problems.

Growing at nearly 7 percent. Big ticket defence purchase happening and on the cards, major acquisitions world wide in the last couple of years. Yeah India has financial problems. Problem of Plenty i would say. Thank you.

Internal dissent in India? No, its those sponsored by Chinese friends. We are very well united. Mind you own business and solve your problems and Tibet and Xinjiang. THAT is what called DISSENT.

Got news for the Chinese. Unemployment % in India is at 7.2% and in China its 9% (List of countries by unemployment rate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Unemployment is at its lowest in India. Heard of NREGA? It helps reducing unemployment in rural areas. Yes India is a vast country and with huge population that is unemployed. But percentage wise its not that bad.

Someone ask these Chinese to get the facts right.

 

[RPK]

Beijing's muscle-flexing masks its insecurity - dnaindia.com

Hong Kong: China's perception of itself as an emerging dominant power, coupled with a fragility in its internal economic and political situation, may account for the recent border intrusions into India -- and similar "aggressive" posturing against other countries in the region, security analysts tell DNA.

"There are two components to China's behaviour," says Andrew Shearer, director of studies at the Lowy Institute for International Policy. "On the one hand, we see an increasingly assertive China that wants other countries to acknowledge its rise as an emerging power. But paradoxically, its behaviour also reflects a fragile internal situation, in particular, a sense of insecurity in China's political leadership."

Like India, other countries in the region too have had to deal with Chinese 'muscle-flexing'. "China has been sending submarines into Japanese waters in what amounts to an act of war," says China-watcher Gordon Chang. China has also tried to drive the US military out of international waters in East Asia, and has warned oil major Exxon against doing business with Vietnam to extract oil from a disputed area that China claims as its own, he recalls.

China's stand on the border dispute with India has hardened since 2006, when it publicly claimed sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh, says professor Sandy Gordon at the Centre of Excellence in Policing and Security at the Australian National University.

Rory Medcalf, international security program director at the Lowy Institute, believes that while caution is warranted when dealing with China, "I don't think there's anything to gain from focussing solely on the potentially destabilising implications of China's rise."

But first, says Shearer, India must lay down a clear framework for relations with China, identifying areas of common interest and also its strategic interests and values that are non-negotiable. "I wouldn't argue that India should take a needlessly provocative position towards China, but India should send very clear private signals to the Chinese government and put in place publicly a clear framework for the relationship -- one where China understands where you're coming from, where they can work with you and which areas are off-limits."

 

[RPK]

'India is not doing enough to protect China border' - dnaindia.com

Are India and China heading towards another border conflict? The rising graph of border incursions and aggressive patrolling seems to indicate a sharpening of tensions between the dragon and the elephant.

According to the Indian army chief, there were 21 Chinese incursions in June, 20 in July and 24 in August. Between 2006 and 2008, Chinese intrusions doubled from 140 incidents to 270.

What's China trying to do? Is it itching for a conflict? Or is it trying to build up pressure for Indian concessions in some other sphere? And what should India do in response? DNA spoke to Gordon Chang, avid China-watcher and author of The Coming Collapse of China, to look for answers. Chang was clear that India needs to stiffen its resolve and push-back against China's "aggressive, hostile" border incursions.

Excerpts from the interview:
What are China's geostrategic calculations in relation to India?
China sees India as an adversary and wants to destabilise it. Even in the 1970s, China transferred nuclear weapons technology to Pakistan to keep India in check. China has supported terrorists who operate in India, China supports Pakistan and is making trouble in Nepal. Chinese border incursions into India will continue until India starts speaking out in public and pushes back. Right now, you have Indian politicians who refuse to criticise China. Beijing thinks India won't react, and can be pushed around.

Is there a risk of a repeat of the 1962 war?
There could be, but my concern is that India isn't doing enough to protect its border claims. Someday, a Chinese incursion will go wrong, and they'll end up killing some Indian soldiers, and we'll see a flare-up, but India isn't as prepared as it needs to be.
The Chinese are starting to believe their own propaganda and what idiots in the West say about China's rise. They see themselves as a dominant power in waiting and are flexing their muscles.

How should India respond?
First, India needs to understand that China is an adversary. Indian politicians need to talk in public about aggressive, hostile China and what it means for India. India also needs to do more to reinforce its border; it needs better infrastructure so it can get troops and material to the frontlines quicker.

Is America's 'absence' in Asia emboldening China?
It is. China thinks it has a free hand to do as it pleases and has stepped up its aggression against its neighbours. They've probably figured it right that the US won't respond - preoccupied with domestic economic problems and healthcare reforms. The Obama administration also misunderstands China: it thinks the US needs China and shouldn't upset it and ignore what it does. It's going to lead to trouble in the future.

How much of China's aggression is driven by domestic political and economic compulsions?
China has a number of problems - Tibet, Xinjiang, and an economy in trouble - and all of them are unfolding simultaneously. I'm not sure China has a coordinated strategy of thinking "we have trouble at home, we need to start a border war." But you have a situation where Chinese leaders are acting aggressively for any number of reasons, since they're not getting any pushback.

 

[RPK]

Chinese incursions now reported in Uttarakhand

Dehradun (Uttarakhand): Uttarakhand Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal has reportedly informed the Central government about possible incursions by the Chinese in his state.

Pokhriyal, quoting reports from locals in Rimkhim in Chamoli district, said the Chinese entered the state on September 5 and left behind biscuit packet wrappers and cigarettes.

He informed both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Home Ministry about this development and sought their help in curbing what he calls frequent incursions in his state.


He said, "We have shared the information with the Centre and we have demanded for more patrolling force at the Indo-China border."

About a fortnight ago that the Chinese had ventured as far as the Pangong Lake in Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir. According to reports, Chinese military helicopters had air dropped food packets in the region. In another provocation, Chinese troops entered 1.5 kilometres into Indian Territory near Mount Gya -- recognised as International border by India and China. Chinese troops painted rocks, boulders in Indian Territory red and labeled them "China". The Chinese government, however, has denied this charge through its Foreign Ministry.

A private television channel quoted the Leh Deputy Commissioner as mentioning in a letter every instance of Chinese incursion and threats to sheperds in the region. The letter states that the Chinese are not only disputing territory, they are actually claiming the land as their own.

China has also raised a stink over proposed visit to Tamang in Arunachal Pradesh by Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

 

[RPK]

Chinese taking land by inches and not yards


Leh: The Chinese Army has done some construction activities along the international border across Karakoram ranges in Ladakh sector for the first time since the 1962 stand-off between the two countries with a report of Jammu and Kashmir government saying that they have been taking "land in inches and not in yards".

The Chinese Army – PLA – has been engaged in construction activities across the Karakoram ranges which could be used for either stationing of additional personnel or mounting a camera for monitoring Indian troop movement, official sources said.


The Karakoram pass falls precisely on the boundary between India and China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region, marking northern end of Sino-Indian border, known as the Line of Actual Control.

It also plays a major geographic role in the dispute between Pakistan and India over control of the Siachen Glacier area immediately to the west of the pass.

This situation arose from the Simla Agreement, signed in 1972 between India and Pakistan, when the treaty failed to specify the last 100 km of ceasefire line from end of the Line of Control to Karakoram Pass. The West of the Pass is also referred as China-Indian-Pakistani tripoint.

While Army tried to downplay this development, they, however acknowledged that some digging activity had been noticed. "There has been no report of concrete huts being built across Karakoram Pass. However, some digging has been noticed well inside Chinese territory," an Army spokesman said in a written reply to a news agency.

In a related development, the report of Jammu and Kashmir government highlights the Chinese incursions into various parts of Ladakh.

"They (Chinese) have threatened the nomadic people who had been using Dokbug area (in Ladakh sector) area for grazing since decades long, in a way to snatch our land in inches. A Chinese proverb is famous in the world – better do in inches than in yards," the report filed by a former Sub Divisional Magistrate (Nyoma) Tsering Norboo said.

Norboo had been deputed by the state government to probe incursion of Chinese Army in Dokbug area and threatening the local shepherds to leave the land as it belonged to them. The area has been used by the shepherds to graze their livestock as the area is warmer compared to other parts of Ladakh.

The SDM pointed out that it was another attempt by Chinese to claim the territory as disputed in the same fashion as they had taken Nag Tsang area opposite to Phuktse airfield in 1984, Nakung in 1991 and Lungma-Serding in 1992.

The area of Dokbug and Doley Tango was frequented by shepherds and nomads from December to March every year during which their young lambs were capable to walk.

The SDM has also highlighted the fact that Army stopped these nomads from vacating the land who were terrified by the Chinese threats.

Ahead of this construction work in Karakoram region of Ladakh sector, the Chinese Army has violated the International Border in Ladakh region and painted boulders and rocks in the area red.

The Chinese troops had entered nearly 1.5 kilometres into the Indian territory on July 31 near Mount Gya, recognised as International border by India and China, and painted the boulders and rocks with "China" and "Chin9" in red spray paint.

The 22,420 ft Mount Gya, also known as "fair princess of snow" by Army, is located at the tri-junction of Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, and Tibet. Its boundary was marked during the British era and regarded as International border by the two countries.

Before this, Chinese helicopters had violated the Indian air space on June 21 along the Line of Actual Control in Chumar region and also helli-dropped some expired food.

 

[Rage]

The intent of the Chinese incursions is more symbolic then anything else.

I wonder if the Chinese would've dare to intrude if India had adopted an aggressive stance towards Pakistani infiltration.

If I remember reading Lemontree Sir's post in WAB, Chinese have some historical basis in claiming Arunachal Pradesh, so our counter-incursion and conflict would put the Chinese in the driver's seat.

A better and more reasonable counter would be to arrest those who crossover, distribute their pictures to the media and urge the Chinese to show restraint and reach a quick settlement on border issues.
This will show that India is a peace loving country, who realises that both have different perceptions of LAC and it is China that is acting hastily and irresponsibly.

Singh sahab,

Thank you for the response. When I referred to "counter-incursion", I meant it purely in terms of Aksai Chin / C-o-K. It would perhaps serve to play the same deterrent function as India adopting a hostile stance towards Pakistani infiltration.

China's "historical basis" in claiming Arunachal Pradesh rests on the fact that it is part of the South Tibetan plateau - a land which is itself illegitimately occupied by them.

Whether counter-incursion does lead to conflict is entirely dependent upon the Chinese. As I said, the purpose of the counter-incursion would be triple-fold: a) to consolidate a competing claim to sovereignty over Chinese-occupied territory just as they have done to us now; b) to make the escalation of this 'mutual swaggering' and posturing entirely their prerogative; if they do fire, they will have established the precedent - I doubt the Chinese would be fools to escalate any return fire or firing upon their own troops ingressing postliminiarily into outright war; c) serve as a deterrent to any subsequent incursions - as: i) they will know that they can expect to be fired upon; ii) that we may legitimately do so without qualms as the modus operandi has been established by them by the principle of 'preeo factum' or prior action.

A state, to my mind, has no respect unless it is willing to defend its borders- and do so by whatever means necessary.

 

[RPK]

We are not a border bully, Beijing tells Delhi- Hindustan Times

Beijing wants to bring back the focus in bilateral ties from the current tensions along the long disputed boundary to the ground reality that India and China need each other as trade and strategic partners in a fast-changing world.

On Monday, China’s ministry of foreign affairs, which denies claims of Chinese airspace violations and incursions in border areas, sent a team to meet the Indian media based in Beijing. Their message: India is a partner and not a rival.

“China does not pose any threat to India,’’ said Sun Weidong, Deputy Director-general of the ministry’s Asian department. “For us, the biggest task is to develop ourselves so that 1.3 billion people can lead a good life. I don’t think it’s logical to say that when a country grows strong it will bully others.’’

The officials did not delve into the issue of reported Chinese incursions in the border areas, but emphasised the common ground India and China share on issues ranging from tackling the global recession to climate change. Sun pointed out that India and China share a bond as their growth alters a world ‘monopolised’ by a few developed nations.

“It’s in China’s interest to have a prosperous neighbour,’’ said Sun. “Both are developing nations, both need a peaceful surrounding environment".

 

[RPK]

After Proxy Pakistan, china comes in open IDRW.ORG

George Fernandes then defence minister of India at the time of NDA regime called “China enemy no 1”, until this statement was made media and people of India only consider Pakistan has the trouble maker for India and peace talks will solve all the issues with Pakistan including ,but Media and mass just could not see who was fund raiser and weapons supplier of Pakistan adventurism over the years .After 9/11 American forces have made Pakistan there launch pad for the attacks on Afghanistan and still use many of their bases to do so .tilt of balance in south Asia moving towards America and India seems to have disturbed china a lot, so called border incursions have been reported on weekly bases in Indian media now .it seems like china is preparing for a low level border conflict to teach India a lesson and also to divert worlds attention from ethical unrest which has been seen over few months in Xinjiang province in china and also in Tibet where riots had broken few times now. Global recession and Failing economy which has been badly hit the export oriented industry in china, is only adding problems to the unrest in Chinese people, the work force of china which provided the stable force for china is workless now and it is demanding work, money and food from its government global recession and protectionism behavior of many European and America is only making matters worse for china .China has been supplying Pakistan weapons in almost every field from Fighter jets to Short range missiles, from Cruise missiles to nuclear weapons program .Pakistani armed forces have become launch pad for Chinese weapons system .Pakistan and china are developing JF-17 single engine fighter aircraft for a while for which more then 200 have been ordered while Pakistan also ordered ultra combat J-10 fighter in undisclosed numbers .Pakistan also will be receiving Chinese AWACS system which only strengthen Pakistan air force’s electronic warfare capability .India is the only neighbor china has, which still has border dispute with it . Over the years Chinese claims over Indian Territory has gone up in world stage, recently it blocked world banks funds for development of infrastructure to Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh which china claims it to be its territory and claimed that India cannot claims funds for Chinese territory. recently Chinese strategist has put forward his views that china with help from so called friendly countries like “Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal” should divide India into 20 to 30 different states for better and stable power in south Asia, the writer of the article, Zhan Lue even suggested that china should help militant outfits in north east and other parts of India financially and logistically to help achieve their objectives. other then usual diplomatic protest India has still not send any strong message to Beijing, still now Paramilitary forces patrol border with china and disputed territory is not even patrolled to avoid border confrontation with Chinese forces. Is Indian committing the same mistakes which it did in the 1962 which lead to border clashes which unprepared Indian Army could not fight with poor weaponry? Is china preparing for similar showdown with India to teach India a Lesson?