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The Rediff Special/ G P Deshpande

China has always been keen to intervene in South Asian politics

The years following 1962 were tense and dialogue between the two states had come to a grinding halt. The Cultural Revolution within China (1961 to 1976) created near-anarchic conditions within China. It was only in 1976 that a new phase in Sino-Indian relations began. Indira Gandhi, with a nuclear implosion at Pokhran in 1974 behind her, decided to take the initiative. There had been no exchange of ambassadors since 1961. Indira Gandhi sent an ambassador to Beijing. The Chinese followed suit. The relations appeared to have taken a new turn.

But even then, progress was too slow and far from satisfactory. In the intervening years, Sikkim had merged with India. China has not recognised Sikkim's accession to India till date. When Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited New Delhi two years ago, it was widely expected that he would announce China's recognition of Sikkim's new status. But that did not happen. However, it is also a valid judgement that while India does talk about Sikkim or the border dispute with China, it has not shown any urgency (since 1976) to get the issues sorted out. For some reason, it prefers to go slow on the question. It is not possible to assert this with any certainty, but some scholars have taken this view and it must be recorded.

China took some time to recognise Bangladesh which had come into existence in 1971. China recognised Dhaka only after Pakistan did so. However, this clearly indicated China's abiding interest in, and its ability to intervene, in South Asia. Certain sections of Indian policy-makers, especially the defence bureaucracy, have often expressed concern at Chinese activities.

This means that in addition to the two broad problems mentioned earlier, two more have to be added:

1. China's reluctance to recognise Sikkim as a part of India.
   
2. China's willingness and capability to intervene (not necessarily militarily) in South Asian politics. This was also demonstrated by Jiang Zemin's pointed effort to make his visit to India two years ago a part of his trip to South Asia.

   Indira Gandhi's efforts to improve ties with China were continued by Rajiv Gandhi and P V Narasimha Rao. These resulted in several agreements. The most important one related to the creation of Joint Working Groups and the agreement on determining the Lines of Actual Control. The programme both in JWGs and in defining the LAC has been steady, but slow.

   Even this slow progress has been marred over the last month. Defence Minister George Fernandes came out with the startling news that China has built a helipad in Arunachal Pradesh. Incidentally China does not officially recognise Arunachal Pradesh as part of India. It probably would have if Deng Xiaoping's package on the border, proposed in 1981, had been accepted by India. The issue was not clinched then, and now we do not know when it will be, if at all.

   However, Prime Minister A B Vajpayee denied Fernandes' statement two days later, causing considerable embarrassment. In his speech in New Delhi, the defence minister also dwelt at some length on India's strategic environment and China's prime role in it. The speech seemed to justify India's two detonations of May 11 or 13, 1998 at Pokhran.

   The story since Pokhran II is fairy well known and probably does not merit repetition. One thing is clear. Even more than the Indo-Pak border, the Sino-Indian border has become active once more. The war of words between the two states is already hot enough. One can only hope that this does not become an actual war, putting both the countries and their development efforts back at least by a decade.

   G P Deshpande is dean, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

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