INDIA-CHINA Border Issue
Tension continues on the border between India and China. Since the bloody clash on Ladakh in 2020, the relationship between the two countries has been continuously sour. To strengthen its stand and show a mirror to China, India has been continuously raising the border dispute at the international forum. But, how interested China is, came to the fore from the recent statement, when it was said from the Chinese side that India should not raise the issue of border dispute all the time.
Their leader, Xi Jinping, has bigger issues. The Chinese leadership says that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi should talk positively instead of raising the border dispute issue every time he meets President Xi Jinping.
A few days back, after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval bluntly prioritized the border dispute in front of Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Johannesburg. The border dispute is the issue on which India always stands eye to its stubborn neighbor China. Whereas, on the other hand, China avoids this important issue every time. Now China has said in this matter that the leaders of India should not talk about border dispute issues every time.
The Chinese leadership’s argument to the Indian leadership raising the border issue is that border differences should be placed in a “proper place” and the two countries should work together towards normalizing bilateral relations in other areas.
What is China’s logic?
The Chinese leadership says President Xi has little time to resolve border issues or other serious problems in bilateral relations. He has more serious issues to deal with.
What happened during Manmohan Singh
When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was in charge of the country, he also felt that Xi Jinping was not interested in talking much on the issues of the border dispute. In March 2013, Singh met President Xi on the sidelines of the BRICS Durban Summit. It is understood that President Xi was very quiet and distant in the first meeting with the Indian Prime Minister and it was clear from his words that he had no time for concerns on the border from the Indian side.
Aggression intensified since 2014
Narendra Modi’s government is in power in the country since 2014, the PLA has been accused of encroachment in Demchok and Chumar area in September 2014 itself. This also resulted in a major standoff with the Indian Army. Commanders of the Indian Army stationed along the border say that the PLA blocked the patrolling rights of the Indian Army once in 2005-2007. In September 2014, the position of the Chinese army at CNN Junction had hardened. The rights of the Indian Army have not been restored during patrolling at CNN Junction.
India serious on border issue but China careless
The PLA has mobilized around 50,000 troops in the western sector of eastern Ladakh with rockets, artillery guns and tanks in eastern Ladakh and inducted six additional combined armed brigades in the eastern sector. This shows that China is adopting a dual approach instead of a solution on the border. PM Modi realizes the seriousness of this issue and hence whenever he meets Chinese leader Xi insists on clarifying the LAC, But, Xi probably thinks that it is not worth his attention to this serious issue and he Want to keep the border dispute going.
