Nehru’s Folly and the ‘Loss’ of Tibet continues ...

Towards end-1953, India took the initiative to try and arrive at a treaty with China, in order to create a friendly neighbour on the north.

The resultant treaty, generally known as the Panchsheel Treaty, arrived at after six months of discussions, served mainly China’s interests. It recognized China’s possession of Tibet, and in fact, legalized it for the world. It allowed for trade with the Chinese government in Tibet, and relinquished numerous facilities which India had since 1904 in Lhasa and enroute between Lhasa and Kalimpong. China could not have asked for more.

It immediately began negotiations with the Indian government for the supply of rice and other foodstuffs via Sikkim to Tibet, for its army and the local people in Tibet, who were all facing famine because the massive Chinese PLA presence was solely dependent on local Tibetan grain surplus, which had been exhausted between September 1951 and 1954.

However, the treaty left a misconception in its wake, at least in Indian minds. The PM, Pt. Nehru, had convinced himself that defining the passes through which the trade would go constituted definition of the alignment of the boundary, at least to the extent that the boundary passed through those passes named. (Shipki La [Pass], Mana Pass, Niti Pass, Kungri Bingri Pass, Dana Pass, and Lipu Lekh Pass) The Chinese did not believe so, believing, as they still do, that these lie within Tibet.
The issue had been brought up by the Chinese negotiators prior to the signing of the treaty but since the treaty does not claim to be a
boundary agreement, they eventually let it pass.

To be continued...