Context: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has rejected China's claims on Ladakhi territory.
Relevance of the topic:
Prelims: Location-based questions on point of contention.
Mains: India and China border issues and solutions.
Major Highlights:
- Recently, China has announced the establishment of two new counties (He'an County and Hekang County) in Hotan Prefecture of China. Parts of the jurisdiction of these counties fall in India's Union Territory of Ladakh.
- MEA has diplomatically communicated to China that India does not accept the illegal Chinese occupation of Indian territory in this area.
- Also, MEA has raised concerns about China's Mega hydropower project in upstreams of Yarlung Tsangpo.
- Yarlung Tsangpo is the chinese name of Brahmaputra river that enters India via Siang territory of Arunachal Pradesh.
About India-China Border Issue Disputes
- China and India have had border tensions since the 1962 war, due to China's claims over Ladakh and Arunachal Prader under “Five Finger Policy”.
- The Five finger policy was devised by China to legitimize its claims over Tibet and surrounding territories like Ladakh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
- Further, in the 1962 war, China gained control over Indian territory renaming it to Aksai Chin.
- Post war, the concept of “Line of Actual Control” (LAC) emerged, marking the patrolling points for both the nations.
- Dokalam Issue: This issue emerged when China claimed the trijunction territory of Bhutan to articulate the geo-strategic interests in the region by risking security of the North-eastern region of India.
- Galwan Valley Issue: In 2020, China violated the LAC to gain control over territories like Galwan valley, Daulat Beg Oldie and Shyok valley leading to clashes with Indian forces deployed in the region. After the clash both the nations are engaged in military and diplomatic dialogues to end the stand-off to achieve normalcy.
Overview of issues in India-China Relationship
- Tail-tell borders: Lack of consensus over the borders leads to claims on territories by extending patrolling regions and changing names of territories. E.g., China unilaterally renamed 15 territories of Arunachal Pradesh in 2022.
- Water Bomb: Development of the large dams on China side of Brahmaputra river leads to risk of a strategic water bomb to disrupt northeastern infrastructure by creating a man-made disaster.
- Illegal settlements: China is building permanent infrastructure and illegal settlements in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh territories.
- Trade balance: India has a high trade deficit with China posing a trade risk of dumping of goods.
- Strategic Rivalry: China is associated with Pakistan in the CPEC project violating Indian Sovereignty and hampering strategic interests in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).
- Cybersecurity concerns: China is working on quantum computing that can hamper the cybersecurity of India. Also, state-sponsored hacker groups of China like APT10 or Stone Panda or Red Apollo challenge India’s cybersecurity.
Suggestions to Improve Relations
- Consensus on border: India and China should engage in diplomatic dialogue to come up with a consensus based map of territorial claims.
- Buffer Dam: India should construct a dam on Brahmaputra to act as a buffer against threat of China’s water bomb
- Satellite based analysis of the illegal settlements of China and diplomatically engaging to vacate them.
- Revitalising Border infrastructure: India should enhance all-weather connectivity in the border and promote well being by providing economic opportunities to border villages.
- Reducing trade deficits by promoting Indian industries by Make in India and Atma Nirbhar Bharat. Also, diversification of the import basket can resolve the issue of dependency on China.
Conclusion: India-China relations are marked by persistent border disputes, strategic rivalry, and concerns like trade imbalances and cybersecurity threats. To foster stability, both nations must prioritise diplomatic dialogue, resolve territorial claims, address water resource challenges, enhance border infrastructure, and reduce trade dependency while promoting regional peace and mutual economic growth.