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A FUTURE CHINA STRATEGY FOR INDIA continues...
India’s third mistake was again to do with the McMahon Line:
India’s obstinate refusal to negotiate regarding it, which has already been
mentioned.
India’s fourth mistake with regard to the border was not to do with
the McMahon Line, but was Nehru’s decision in 1954 to unilaterally
choose the once-proposed Johnson-Ardagh Line as the Sino-Indian
boundary between the state of J&K and the PRC. The Government of
India’s own maps had been showing the boundary between J&K and
the PRC to be ‘undefined’. This was another of his decisions which
unnecessarily complicated what could have been a relatively easy
negotiation, if the suggested boundary had been the one officially
proposed by Britain to China, the Macartney-MacDonald Line.
CONFIDENCE-BUILDING MEASURES: SINO-INDIAN
MILITARY AND NAVAL COOPERATION
The best way of conquering an enemy
Is to win him over by not antagonising him.
(Lao Tzu, ‘Warring States’ period, ca. 480-221 B.C.E.)
Sino-Indian military cooperation should be strictly limited to
‘Confidence-Building Measures’ (CBM) along the disputed Himalayan
borders with China. Joint naval exercises with China are not a good
idea for India till major issues that are officially pending, such as the
boundary issue, are fully settled. Even if such naval exercises are
ostensibly to help create better inter-operability in joint Sino-Indian
maritime ‘policing’ of the straits connecting the Indian Ocean to the
South China Sea from piracy, and for joint protection of the
international sea-lanes through which much international trade passes.
China is likely to staff such “co-operating” vessels with officers who
understand either English or Hindi or both, though they will deal only
through one or two official interpreters, while Indian naval personnel,
other than the interpreter, are likely to understand no Mandarin. Thus
the Chinese will learn much more about the Indian Navy’s procedures,
vessels, strengths and weaknesses, and will stand to gain much more
than India will.
To be continued....