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India's new prime minister, Narendra Modi, was sworn in on May 26. Before the election he had declared India's sovereignty over Arunachal Pradesh, which is also claimed by China. After he was elected, he made a high-profile invitation to Lobsang Sangay, leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile, to attend his inauguration. The signs are there that relations between China and India may not be smooth in the foreseeable future.
Beijing did not send any message of congratulation to Modi until the day of the inauguration, conveying a message of discontent with Modi and his nationalistic brand of politics, not to mention his past meetings with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
The territorial dispute between China and India involves a total area of 300,000 square kilometers. Border disputes have sparked brief periods of armed conflict in 1962, 1967 and 1987, while the "tents confrontation" in May last year lasted half a month.
Indian media outlets recently reported that China's defense minister Chang Wanquan is set to visit India. If this is true, this may avert the possibility of future border clashes in the near term.
What concerns India the most is China's rising military power and its strategic deployment in the Indian Ocean. An Indian thinktank a few years ago raised the idea of establishing an Asian version of Nato, and India has continued to expand its own naval forces.
In recent years, some voices in India have urged the formation of a formal alliance with the United States, Japan and Australia as a counterbalance to China. But New Delhi has appeared equivocal over such as prospect.
When Modi attended the Shangri-La Dialogue last week, his first international engagement after taking office, he kept a low profile as the United States, Japan and Vietnam condemned China's policy in the South China Sea.
When Modi's predecessor Manmohan Singh attended the BRICS summit in South Africa in May last year, he told China's president, Xi Jinping, that India will not be used as a tool to contain China.
Xi is set to send an envoy to India in the near future. By that time, we will see whether Modi is sincerely keen to maintain friendly ties with China based on a joint statement the two nations signed a few years ago
India under Modi could see rocky ties with China ahead|Editorials|Opinion|WantChinaTimes.com
Beijing did not send any message of congratulation to Modi until the day of the inauguration, conveying a message of discontent with Modi and his nationalistic brand of politics, not to mention his past meetings with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
The territorial dispute between China and India involves a total area of 300,000 square kilometers. Border disputes have sparked brief periods of armed conflict in 1962, 1967 and 1987, while the "tents confrontation" in May last year lasted half a month.
Indian media outlets recently reported that China's defense minister Chang Wanquan is set to visit India. If this is true, this may avert the possibility of future border clashes in the near term.
What concerns India the most is China's rising military power and its strategic deployment in the Indian Ocean. An Indian thinktank a few years ago raised the idea of establishing an Asian version of Nato, and India has continued to expand its own naval forces.
In recent years, some voices in India have urged the formation of a formal alliance with the United States, Japan and Australia as a counterbalance to China. But New Delhi has appeared equivocal over such as prospect.
When Modi attended the Shangri-La Dialogue last week, his first international engagement after taking office, he kept a low profile as the United States, Japan and Vietnam condemned China's policy in the South China Sea.
When Modi's predecessor Manmohan Singh attended the BRICS summit in South Africa in May last year, he told China's president, Xi Jinping, that India will not be used as a tool to contain China.
Xi is set to send an envoy to India in the near future. By that time, we will see whether Modi is sincerely keen to maintain friendly ties with China based on a joint statement the two nations signed a few years ago
India under Modi could see rocky ties with China ahead|Editorials|Opinion|WantChinaTimes.com