US-China Relations

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  • Ravi Ranjan asked: What could be the implications of the proposed US-China consultations on South Asia for India? Are we seeing formation of G-2?

    Ashok Kumar Behuria replies: US-China consultations on South Asia are on for quite some time. The fourth round is coming up later this year. They are discussing all issues including India-Pakistan relations. There have been even indirect offers to mediate if it was agreeable to both the parties.

    However, there is no cause for concerns as far as India is concerned. Both China and the US understand that all outstanding issues between India and Pakistan should be resolved bilaterally and at the most they would play the role of facilitators. Both the countries have on different occasions asked Pakistan in the past to join India in a dialogue rather than seek their mediation in the event of any crisis.

    As far as other issues in South Asia are concerned, there is, one believes, a tacit recognition of the preeminent strategic position of India, which is duly backed by a realisation that any attempt either to hurt the strategic interests of India or change the power equations would be counter-productive; it would upset the regional power balance and threaten regional peace.

    Moreover, for China, the American attempt to undertake a regular dialogue on South Asia will both comfort China for the importance it receives from the US, and help China moderate its approach towards South Asia.

    There is disquiet at certain levels in India about the growing Chinese footprints in the neighbouring countries especially because of the temptation of these countries to use China as a balancer against India, wrongly perceived as a hegemon. However, in view of the shift in India-US relations in the recent years, US-China dialogue can be used as a forum to transmit Indian concerns to China regularly. On the whole, India should keep a close eye on the discussions in the forum, establish a healthy line of communication with both the countries, and communicate its concerns in a free, frank and uninhibited manner.

    China Year Book 2011

    China Year Book 2011
    • Publisher: Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses
      2012

    The Year Book seeks to promote a better understanding of contemporary issues affecting China and their impact on India. This first edition of an annual series of year books is a compilation of incisive chapters focussing on China’s relations with the US, South Asia, ASEAN, Japan and East Asia, Central and West Asia, and the SCO. India-China relations—of considerable interest and significance to India—are discussed as are the Chinese economy, media, the People’s Liberation Army, and the political landscape inside the country.

    • ISBN 978-93-82169-04-8,
    • Price: ₹. 299/-
    • E-copy available
    2012

    The China Bull in the Ring

    The Chinese decision to send warships to the Scarborough shoals was intended to send a message not only to the Philippines but also to the United States as well as other Asian countries in dispute with China over the South China Sea.

    May 28, 2012

    Chen Guangcheng and US-China relations: An Epilogue

    Chen’s departure from the US embassy in Beijing points to the unwillingness and inability of the US to bring to bear any pressure on China on human rights issues.

    May 03, 2012

    Chen Guangcheng and US-China Relations

    The issue of Chen Guangcheng will require much time and many rounds of negotiations so that neither China nor the US “lose face”.

    May 01, 2012

    Vice-President Xi Jinping’s visit to the United States

    Xi Jinping tried his best to lower the temperature by suggesting that the vast Pacific Ocean has ‘ample space’ for both China and the United States.

    March 01, 2012

    What are friends for? The supply of restricted items to Chashma via China

    Coming close on the heels of the Chinese decision to build two nuclear power plants at Karachi as well as the continued assistance to the construction of nuclear reactors at Chashma, Xun Wang’s case raises the worrying spectre of spotty Chinese implementation of and compliance with international export control regulations.

    November 29, 2011

    China’s Strategic Culture and Sino-US Military Relations: A Re-view

    China’s strategic culture professes both peace and aggression, but is also marked by ruse and deception. Military power is a necessary ingredient of great power status and China’s current rise includes hi-tech military modernisation that can challenge the only contender it has in the Asia-Pacific, the United States.

    July 2011

    Complex Cold Warriors: US-China Relations & Implications for India

    US-China relations have assumed a new dimension in recent years and reflect
    the various tensions and mutual suspicions that are inevitable in a relationship
    between an existing super power and a rising super power.

    July 2011

    ‘Cheonan’ Epilogue: Prelude to the Sino-US Incompatibility on the South China Sea Dispute

    The 'Cheonan' incident has prodded and expedited the strategic comeback of the US in East Asia. The US offer to mediate the territorial disputes over islands and seabed minerals in the South China Sea at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) meeting in July 2010 has provoked harsh criticism from the Chinese. This US diplomatic move appears to be a premeditated one to substantially diminish the influence of China in the region, to re-secure its own strategic forward military presence and to signal that it is not yet time for China to acquire absolute control over this critical waterway.

    July 2011

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