no concession
| Date :28-Aug-2020 |
NEVER before had the Line of Actual Control (LAC) seen such unprecedented deployment of forces by India and China since the 1962 conflict. The build-up underscores the seriousness of the current problem in Ladakh and also makes a strong assertion of India’s stand over the dispute -- there is absolutely no room for compromise. This message has yet again been delivered to the stubborn Chinese leadership in a loud and clear manner by External Affairs Minister Mr. S Jaishankar.
“When it comes to finding a solution, this must be predicated on honouring all agreements and understandings, and not attempting to alter the status quo unilaterally,” Mr. Jaishankar has stated on the current border row with China. This is a clear declaration of India’s position on the issue and all future diplomatic and military talks with China will have to begin from this point only. Despite multiple rounds of talks between top military commanders of both the Armies the border tensions refuse to boil down due to unilateral decisions on disengagement of troops made by the Chinese side from time to time. This has been the Chinese style of diplomacy which tries to berate the other side’s position in a show of oneupmanship. However, this time around China, too, realises that it has met its match in India. The bold Indian stand gives a new start to the complex relationship with the big neighbour.
As Mr. Jaishankar has stated this is an extremely consequential relationship for both sides. It has its fair share of problems but all those still can be solved through a strategy and vision. The last part causes the biggest heartburn to the Chinese leadership under Mr. Xi Jinping as the Dragon insists on a hegemony in the Asian region. India and China have the ability to work together to determine the Asian century but the one-way road, full of trust deficit, chosen by Beijing does not fit in India’s all-inclusive foreign policy. The consequential but extremely intricate relationship with China needs a relook within India. It is a big misfortune of the country that its firm response to the Chinese belligerence is seen with tinted glasses by the differing political community of India. When the entire political spectrum is supposed to form a common frequency to deal with a difficult neighbour, some shallow political minds keep playing truant that totally suits China.
A fractured opinion among the political class in India will only help the Chinese agenda of peddling more lies and making unilateral statements to create further muddle. China’s reluctance to restore status quo ante in Galwan as well as Pangong Tso lake regions is borne out of the huge embarrassment it has faced in the misadventure. Poor international opinion of the Chinese incursion in Indian territories has made Beijing recoil with an untold unease. It is showing in form of the obstinacy during the longest border stand-off with India. The amassing of forces, deployment of helicopters in sensitive regions, toeing the same line during military and diplomatic discussions are due to absence of a headway in the gameplan in face of India’s strongest resistance to their overtures in all these years.
India still insists on a solution to the border stand-off in accordance with existing agreements and protocols for border management between the two countries. Full credit to the Indian leadership under Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi for holding firm on its stand and the Indian military for guarding the border despite ruthless weather conditions. The Army has set shop for a long haul given the continued failure in diplomatic talks. Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Bipin Rawat has also made public that the military option was on table in case the talks failed. Given the lack of military conflicts between the two countries for decades and present geopolitical thinking to avoid battles, an all-out armed offensive may still not happen but as India has reiterated, it will do what it takes to secure its borders.