CHINA AND INDIA - CHINA'S OPEN THREAT TO INDIA

The war between the Sikhs and the Chinese in the 1840s when the Chinese over-ran Ladakh, which was under the Sikhs, and consequent treaty between them allowed the Sikhs to rule over Ladakh and the Chinese withdrew beyond Tibet.  The British defeated the Sikhs and took control of Ladakh.  In the year 1865, W H Johnson, an official with the Survey of India, proposed a line along the Pongong Tso lake and including Aksai Chin into Ladakh. This map was presented to the Maharaja of Kashmir who accepted the same and stationed troops in a fort constructed at Shahidulla (Xaidulla) in the upper Karakash river region.  As Chinese did not control either Uyghuristan or Tibet, the map of this line was never presented to them. 

Likewise, British survey officer Henry Mcmohan in the year 1914 drew a demarcation line on the eastern part of the country originally known as North East Frontier Area (NEFA), known as Mcmohan line demarcating the border between India and Tibet in the east. This was signed by Henry Mcmohan and the government of Tibet. Though this was done in the early part of 20th century, this line had never been accepted as the line of border demarcation by China contesting the powers of Tibet for signing such treaties, as it never accepted Tibet as an independent nation. The Chinese aggression in 1962 and claim of their right over the present Arunachal Pradesh in NE India is a consequence of these rejection of the demarcation line.  Likewise, once Uyghuristan was run-over by China and made into a province of their own, the Johnson line between Tibet, Uyghuristan and India had become a bone of contention between China and India, with China quoting historical wars and annexation by them of the area coming under larger Ladakh today.  

East Turkistan or Uyghuristan was annexed by force by China and made into their province as Xinjiang.  Likewise Tibet was run over by China in 1959 and India was not disturbed at all and allowed the Chinese occupation of Tibet. The map prior to annexation of various lands/ terrirories forcibly by China is given below which gives one an idea about how China had grown in terms of geographical area.

         

(image courtesy: Google)

The map showing the present position of China vis-a-vis other countries in Asia is depicted in the following picture (courtesy: Google)


The post independent conflagration between India and Pakistan in the north west resulted in major part of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh being forcibly annexed by Pakistan and they continue to occupy it.  A portion of the Ladakh area which is the Aksai Chin in the northern most part of the country was ceded to China by Pakistan in the war between India and China.  Historically, China had not accepted either the Johnson line between Tibet and Ladakh or the Macmohan line between Tibet and north eastern part of India. Once China over-ran Tibet and made it into its own territory both these lines of demarcation were rejected by China and disputed since. Even the 14th Dalai Lama did not accept the Mcmohan line claiming that Arunachal Pradesh was part of Tibet as late as 2003.  Only in 2008, he relented, accepted and announced that Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory.

The present issues relating to the Chinese flexing its muscles is based on the above historical facts.  The Chinese had been building up its military might ever since it faced certain defeat in the Sino-Vietnamese war or the third Indo-China war, when Vietnam invaded Cambodia. Presently, the Chinese military is the largest and strongest in the Asian continent.  If there is a war between the two nuclear neighbours, with stronger armies and naval presence in each others waters, how it will pan out is everybody's guess.  Many tomes speculating on the outcome can be written that will be of interest to many military history buffs. Both at Doklam earlier and presently along the Galwan Valley and the Pongong Tso lake of which 60% lies in the Chinese administered Tibet autonomous region the Chinese actions seem to be based on their relentless claim of the territories as their own.

With a puppet communist regime in Nepal, China is now making it amply clear that it does not brook any defiance or threat from India as for as its economic and military might are concerned.  The very fact that Nepal objected to a road on the Indian side of western border of Nepal with India and made a new map showing these areas inside Nepal territory is a fact that has all the stamps of Chinese working behind the scenes.  Any dispute on border will be discussed bilaterally and settled with both sides agreeing on the outcome of such discussions.  But here Nepal unilaterally decides to dump the dispute-redressal-mechanism and diplomatic route and instead going ahead with publishing a map including the areas under dispute as Nepali territory smacks of just not arrogance but a false bravado with the help of their new found friend China.  

China issuing a warning to India through its official mouth piece Global Times is a pointer to what is the thinking of the strongman of China.  The president of China Xi Jinping is just not ambitious, he wants to be the sole leader in the entire world who cannot be questioned nor dethroned by any other nations either surreptitiously or in a war.  Even the handling of the pandemic which originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan and the diplomatic stand off with US and Australia had not deterred the CPC in reposing its faith on its current General Secretary and president of the country.  

In these circumstances, the issue of India accepting the invite to be a part of expanded G-7, at the behest of USA is a clear indicator to China where and with whom India's interests lie. China may up the ante and make the matters of the stand off and military build up along the Pongsong Tso lake worse.  India, also is not falling behind.  The improvement of infrastructure in the border areas in Ladakh and an air-field in the far north of Ladakh at DBO, the road from Dabruk to Shyok to DBO, building up of its military might in these areas are pointers to others including China that no one can take India for granted or as a weaseling as it was deemed to be in 1962.  But it is highly unfortunate that the opposition leaders, without understanding the geopolitical issues involved are criticizing the present government in India in its handling of the stand-off. Let us wait for further developments to see as to how India and China resolve this present stand off on the eastern/southern banks of Pongsong Tso lake on the Gulwan valley or does it escalate into a limited theater war between the neighbours.