Decoding India-China Stand-Off and the Way Forward

In a conversation with Sanjay Pugalia, Joshi spoke about Indo-China relationship and the way forward for India.

(Photo: The Quint)

Amid the heightened tension between India and China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, with troops from both sides remaining engaged in an eyeball-to-eyeball situation in several areas, The Quint's Editorial Director Sanjay Pugalia spoke with Manoj Joshi, distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF).

Joshi pointed out that one of the main reasons behind the dispute is that the border is not well defined on the map which leads to confusion. The dispute covers around 3,488 kilometres along the LAC and China claims that Arunanchal Pradesh is a part of southern Tibet .

Joshi also spoke about Trump’s interest in China and said that it was because of the upcoming elections that he wouldn’t leave any opportunity to attack the ‘dragon’.

Joshi pointed out that India and China share a 4000-kilometre long border which doesn’t have a fixed map. Both countries have their own understanding of this border. He said that there are 15-16 contentious locations and every summer after the snow melts, confusion regarding these territories arise which eventually leads to tensions.

Speaking about the alternatives which India has, Manoj Joshi said that China is an economic superpower and India should employ the same tactics with China, which China employed with the United States.

“Today China needs a big market which India can provide. We can have bilateral talks on that but at the same time we must not ignore our weaknesses. If we give legitimacy to Taiwan today, China can walk up to us tomorrow saying that Kashmir is a part of Pakistan. What will we do then? Like the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) which functions out of India, China can allow a government of Kashmir to operate out of its land.”

Manoj Joshi