Author: Louise Merrington, ANU

Although the disputed border between China and India is often highlighted as the major sticking point in Sino–Indian relations, in reality it has remained relatively peaceful since the end of the 1962 war, and the potential for overt military conflict in the region remains minimal.

Of much greater concern is the strategic quadrilateral relationship in South Asia involving China, India, the United States and Pakistan. Read more…

Author: Ghulam Ali, Monash University

In the third week of December Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao made consecutive visits to India and Pakistan. Since mid-1990, top Chinese leaders have been trying to include both India and Pakistan in their South Asian tours to show that Beijing treats the arch-rivals equally.

The visit came in the middle of tensions in East Asia and, once again, instability in Sino-Indian relations. Although India and China celebrated 2010 as a year of friendship, their relations for the last few years have been tense over a host of issues created by both sides. Read more…

Author:  Sourabh Gupta, Samuels International Associates

Embarking on his 2005 visit to New Delhi, Premier Wen Jiabao had noted that the India trip was the most important item on his international calendar that year.

In New Delhi, Wen and Prime Minister Singh proceeded to append their signatures to a groundbreaking set of political parameters aimed at solving their longstanding boundary question. For India, the parameters constituted a belated formal acceptance of the significant elements of the principles-based offer to boundary dispute resolution that had first been tabled by Zhou Enlai in New Delhi almost 45 years to the day of the 2005 meeting. Read more…

Author: Dibyesh Anand, University of Westminster

When it comes to dealing with dissent within the country, the contrast between the two rising powers in Asia — China and India — is distinct. The Chinese government believes in total co-option or complete marginalisation of intellectuals; the foreign ministry’s strong response to the Nobel Peace Prize for Liu Xiaobo is an interesting case study in this regard. In contrast, the response of the Indian government to international recognition of critics — such as Binayak Sen of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, known for his campaigns against state-sponsored armed vigilantes in Naxal-affected Chhattisgarh in central India — is usually muted. An active civil society, competing media sources, multi-party electoral system, and effective judiciary — all with their own flaws, no doubt — cannot ensure an accountable government in India, but it does mean that dissenting voices aren’t suppressed as easily. This different attitude toward intolerance of dissent is to be expected as India is a multiparty democracy and China is a Party state (where no redressal mechanisms exist against the ruling party).

But it would be misleading to buy fully into a democratic India versus authoritarian China narrative and assume that more plurality, openness and fairness flows automatically out of the former. Read more…

Author: Vikas Kumar, Bangalore

The controversial replacement of General Stanley McChrystal, the commander of US forces in Afghanistan, has exposed the strategic confusion at the heart of NATO’s War on Terror. The strategies pursued so far have not only failed to stabilise Afghanistan but have also destabilised Pakistan. Consequently, this war is unlikely to end in the near future, if victory, howsoever defined, is the objective. Even if victory is obtained, the subsequent revival of Islamic extremists (henceforth, Islamists) is quite likely. So, without an ‘ideological war’ strategy, there is no point wasting taxpayers’ billions in temporarily repulsing ragtag Islamist militias.

NATO believes that a decisive victory coupled with democratisation and development is sufficient to conclusively defeat the Islamists. Read more…

Author: Mohsin S. Khan, Peterson Institute

While successive Indian and Pakistani governments have often repeated the desire for peaceful relations, reaching a comprehensive agreement that settles outstanding disputes, such as Kashmir and the Indus waters agreement, still does not seem to be in the cards as yet. However, developing stronger economic relations between the two countries could be a base on which to build overall ties and trust. More specifically, despite the political issues that divide them, steps could be taken toward better economic relations through expanding trade between the two countries.

The potential gains from increased economic integration between India and Pakistan are large. Read more…