China has locked horns with India on the Doklam Plateau for the past month with the intention of taking over the narrow area that connects India’s northeastern states from the rest of the country. Chinese forces have increased their presence near India’s borders with Bhutan, China itself, Nepal and Sikkim in the north and with Bangladesh in the south, and India has responded by reinforcing its border posts.
This confrontation is causing concern not only in the already tense region of South Asia but around the world.
Remembering its defeat in 1962 by China in a previous border dispute, India has flexed its muscles while pursuing the “Modi doctrine”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy encompasses muscular and even offensive policy options in order to protect India’s national interests, sovereignty, territorial integrity and peace and security.
The entire world including China is anxious about the future course of Sino-Indian relations.
China is aware that India today is not what it was in 1962 because of its advanced military power. China will encounter stiff resistance from Indian forces if it decides to wage a limited war with India around Doklam. Chinese forces will face logistical hardships due to their distance from their supply bases and might also find themselves encircled by Indian forces on three sides, whose supplies are readily available from military base stations. Furthermore, the Indian Army is well trained to wage mountain warfare.
Global opinion, particularly that of the United States, Russia, Britain, Japan, South Korea, and several Southeast Asian states does not support the rising Chinese expansionist aspirations in the Asia-Pacific region, the South China Sea, Central Asia, West Asia and Africa. The Belt and Road Initiative is also of concern. Though China claims to pursue peaceful goals, its foreign policy is diametrically opposed to its stated position, as evidenced by its threat to India’s Doklam area.
But will it be an easy course for Beijing? Although India may find it difficult to fight an all-out war with China, it is certainly capable of wounding China’s body politic. Beijing might be wise to reconsider before it launches an offensive against India.
ITS NOT INDIA WHO IS INVADING CHINA… INFACT ITS CHINA WHICH IS INVADING BHUTAN, IN THE SAME MANNER LIKE ITS SMALLER NEIGHBORS IN SOUTH CHINA SEA…
its was x jumping first jumping in bhutan territory later india jumping in Bhutan on bhutan call to safe guard Bhutani territory as per treaty signed 50 years back to protact for any outside invanders ,who not only threat 4 bhutan also indian border secuirty..
Even Doklam standoff ends, the relationship between Beijing and New Delhi will never be the same again. China is used to getting its way in Asia. It has bullied the Philippines, rejected the United Nations verdict against it, threatened Japan and Taiwan, and challenged the United States over free naval movement in the South China Sea. Beijing’s tensions with Washington over North Korea are also set to rise.
Unlike chinies you have access to world media. you should know that china tried to build road on bhutan land ,a small country which is under the protection of India. Therefore India has to stop China,when it tries to forcefully build a road in bhutan.
China has border dispute with all its border nation and we all know how china has an irrational claim on South china sea. India unlike china never suppress 3rd country but china has invaded tibet and make tibetien ppl life miserable. Tiwan is also in direct military threat of china.
World is not buying china false media news. and no country is supporting china claim either.
Varun Kumar Did you know how India annexed Manipur, Tripura ?Besides, why so many insurgent groups are active in the so called India’s northeast ? Newly born India is still in the state of nation building. India’s well ochestrated malicious design to occupy small neighboring states is dangerous. Try to learn more about India’s shameful occupations before hitting others.
I think before the India become so powerful to protect other Countries like Bhutan, it shall mind their own business in domestically, since the war is equal to money-burning. Maybe the only benefit India can get is drawing the domestic conflict to the conflict with China temporary, otherwise the ash of burned money can not turn India into a fertile land, anywayIndia is not rich like China, and most of it people are living under the poverty line.As the senior governor of India has said it is not longer like 1962 anyway, but I must tell you the truth that China is also or even better.
China is the new imperial power and it is in the world interest to nip the bud of imperialist China as China has no morality whatsoever it annexed Tibet ,eyes Taiwan and south China sea etc apparently anything on which China is written it is time that world should help India to stop this bully country otherwise time will come when China will claim over entire moon citing their historical and cultural connections which are ridiculous at best
John Brown looks like your brain only knows the "f" word, who is the moron here. China is even threatening USA interests in the so called South China Sea, wake up and smell the coffee.
Varun Kumar you logic is wrong. even though, as you said, Bhutan is under the protection of india (which is not always right), Bhutan didnt ask for help from india when China was buiding those roads.
Varun Kumar let me correct what you have claimed : First, China has border disputes with several countires( not all neighbors); Second, you have to understand China’s history and should have learnt more about how colonist powers like UK grabbed land from China.
Well said..alow me to repost what I had posted earlier on..
Sorry what?? In relation to someof the low brow and mentally challenged comments to this article, Allow me to point out why the ‘China is invincible’ paradigm is not just ridiculous in the extreme but moronic. Moreover some of the comments in itself presupposes that the Indian establishment, the current dispensation is extremely jingoistic to the point of taking extremely short sighted moves. Allow me to point out why that is not the case here.
1. India and Bhutan have an internally recognized treaty that has been in place since 1950’s, where in India is required to come to Bhutan’s aid in all maters pertaining to its security. This treaty was undertaken by the kingdom in view of China’s annexation of Tibet. And India’s current moves are in line with this said treaty and NOT against international norms as you would like to claim..
2. Had Indian establishment been governed by hyper nationalism and jingoism, then logic dictates that India would have attacked China on the very first day and not wait out two whole months. And need I point out that it is China that is appearing extremely unhinged, rabid and hegemonic, given the spate of venom it spews regularly through it’s various state controlled media organizations, namely the Global times. And most of the state controlled media opted to issue op-eds that are based neither on reason, nor logic and instead opted to enact the rabid attitude of the CPC and opted to base their articles on threats,insults and insinuations. And if that was not provocation enough, there’s the additional fact that China is refusing to share Brahmaputra river levels with India and as a result, there’s flooding in Assam affecting hundreds of thousands, at the moment. So if India had been hyper nationalistic and irrational, then these would be triggers enough to cause it to attack China but that’s not the case, is it? Instead it is China that is increasingly being viewed world over as a nation that is hyper nationalistic and one that is bereft of sanity and sense.
3. On to the Chinese logic vis-a-vis Doklam, need we point out the fact that China subsumed territories that do not explicitly belong to China but to others, from Mongolia to Vietnam and as a result has disputes with all its neighboring countries. China can dream the grand dream of being a Super power but thanks to its expansionist policies, with little or no regard to international norms, treaties it had signed, and to international law, its dreams will remain just that. China is being viewed as extremely aggressive, with little to no regard for treaties where it had promised it will not change the status quo unilaterally as with Doklam but went ahead and did just that. India has various options and it can and will choose to exercise them as it sees fit to protect her interests and as for the Chinese pipe dream of taking Doklam, it will remain just that, a pipe dream.
4. On the question of Bhutan, moronic much? Bhutan has refused diplomatic relations with China for over half century and with good reason. Bhutan will always regard China as an aggressor.
John Brown Moronic much..so guess when there’s no logical counter to offer you resort to insults and name calling. Would suggest that you hump yourself to perdition and damnation and in the process kindly pick up a brain to fill up that empty pathetic cranial space you carry in your head.
Either offer logical coherent counters or just admit defeat, wrap up your tail between your legs and get the heck out.
Moving on, Bhutan and China had a treaty where in "China agreed NOT TO CHANGE THE STATUS QUO in the disputed part of the region" and that means no builidng roads of any sort..you do get that right? And India has been officially called by Bhutan to enforce the treaty between Bhutan and China and to ensure that no constructions can take place on this area BEFORE the issue is settled to the satisfaction of all.
If that’s too hard for you to decipher..well, get bent..
Huang Zhiking It did and there are official communications to this effect with the Indian government. Let me put it this way and the way the issue is yet to die down, it may well end up in the international court where you can bet your last buck that the ruling would be in India and Bhutan’s favort.
Nations cannot sign internationally binding treaties and go back on it and this is why China is massively losing face today diploimatically because it is increasingly perceived as an untrustworthy nation, one that does not abide with the agreements it signs.
As regards Bhutan, they had initially trusted China would uphold and honor their treaty..BIG MISTAKE. And the rest you know at which point Bhutan officially requested India to enforce their security treaty and the rest played out..
Varun Kumar exactly..
Huang Zhiking would suggest that you learn some of that history and even revisit whole chapters..Tibet has been part of Indian kingdoms since 200 BC, ref Maurya, Kushan and there are still records of these treaties granting the same to the Indian kings. So using the Chinese liogic, kindly get the heck out of Indian territory of Tibet and stay out..
Huang Zhiking incidentally, during both the Maurya and Kushan empires, vast swathes of Chinese land was annexed and made part of the Indian empire up to Ganxu, so using the same chinese fermented logic, do hand over these territories to Inida as well ..
Today China stands as a nation that sponsors and protects terrorists and stands head to shoulders with rogue nations and uses terrorism as a form of policy. Irrespective of how Doklam plays out, China should be kicked out of the UNSC and other international bodies..while that may not happen realistically, given the current expansionist and hegemonic moves on the part of China, it is time that the world stood up and said NO to another Hitler in the making, Xi
Allow me to enlighten you..India did not trespass into any soverign country but rather was there at the behest of Bhutan and as per the security accord signed shortly after the annexation of Tibet by China. Bhutan was well within her rights to call whomsoever she sees fit to defend her borders and her interests.
While the area in question was in dispute between China and Bhutan, the two had already signed an internationally binding agreement where China had agreed unequivocally not to change or alter the status quo until the issue has been settled to everyone;s satisfaction. Had China honored its words, the current situation would not have happened.
As it is, China with its hegemonic designs on lands and territories belonging to others, from Vietnam to Mongolia, plans to capture these territories by salami slicing the lot through the pretext of building roads. It assumed that Bhutan was small fry and would not do much to prevent China from snatching the territory, well and now, China stands with egg on its face, internationally.
Hindsight is always 20 20 but in Xi’s case, it is way past the point of no return. And by the way, it is China which is in a bind, India and Bhutnan have variious options from approaching the international court which would decide in both India and Bhutan’s favor for legally, they hold the trump cards with China having already signed and ratified the various treaties. That apart, if China has any designs of attacking India, then you may want to know that India does not base its defense on US or other nations coming to its aid but will stoutly defend her territories and that of her allies with her might, and if a nuke is required to settle the issue, so be it. As it is, India neither coveted any other nations territory nor did it bully, insult, or enforce conditions that required subsuming the said territory unlike China. This time around, India decided that enough was enough and that the bully must be met with force..
Why China is building artificial islands in south China sea ,why these artificial islands are heavily militarised ,because china is the aggressor country, China want to swallow all the wealth of south China sea on which all the countries have claims ,China is a usurper of other countries land ,China did not except international law on sea ,UN tribunal clearly give verdict which favoured philliphines on south China sea dispute ,but as China which has no morality denied the verdict of international body ,is south sea belongs to China because from last 5000 years Chinese ships are sailing (which is ridiculous Chinese logic)there then I think Indian ocean belong to India and whole sea belong UK or FRANCE if we go by Chinese logic also china is saying India is not respecting international law then I think china should first destroy artificial islands in south China sea as no country except china stand on south China sea which include all the neighbouring countries of china and world powers like USA ,AUSTRALIA,UK,INDIA etc, give freedom to Tibet where N number of monks are immolating themselves as they are invaded by Han Chinese and allow other countries to live peacefully otherwise china will soon reap it’s bad karma
Koh Jek Siew Sorry I am supposed to provide the document..lol, would suggest that you ask the Chinese govt to hand over their copy..you can bet that the chinese spies would have provided the CPC with an exact copy of the said agreement between India and Bhutan. I would aslo revert you to the latest batch of communiques between Bhutan and India, their request for help, which was communicated via their ambassador to the MEA and to the PM directly.
In future, would sugges tthat you do some research before slamming others opinions down…your current situation is just the same as that of China, both ludicrous and insensible, but hey, it always pays to do the research.
Moving on, there are two agreements to this effect, signed between China and Bhutan which China has willfully violated..these treaties/ agreements are internattional treaties between two soverign nations and therefore can be enforced by the international court of law, providing China changes its tune and starts respecting international laws and abides by the same
Koh Jek Siew I could point to a million bloggers on weibo located in China who would like nothing better than to overthrow the totalitarian regime there..so ? As for the bhutanese blogger, there are many more who are extremely critical of China and would like China to withdraw from Doklam right away..so using the logic in your comment, does that mean that China will withdraw right away?
Koh Jek Siew Allow me to correct you, it is China that has taken a misstep, in one go it has managed to alienate both India and Bhutan in one go. Furthermore, China needs India for its one road program to work,where as India does not need China.
All that India has to do is to file a claim in the internaitonal court and the one belt program will lose any legal protection and credibility it might have got. Moreover, it was China that started this mess and as a result has riled up India and Bhutan to such an extent that China need not expect a friendly India or a friendly Bhutan.
This is not a zero sum game but as an Indian, allow me to thank China for making this moronic move, which has resulted in removing the blinkers from the Indian establishment and their wrong view that China is our friend..no more, either you are with us or against us and it is obvious that China never was and is most certainly no friend of India..we have taken note of the same and will respond in kind..
Koh Jek Siew LOL so you base your claims on what? Information that is publicly available…allow me to direct you to some of the best museums in China..there are enough historical artifacts and even stupas containing edicts as well as treaties with han Chinese granting various indian kings tracts of land in mainland China.
India has so far not dreamed the distant dream and claimed that it wanted one India and all the territories annexed since the time of Chandragupta maurya to be returned to it..but I would strongly encourage the indian government to start with Tibet, lodge a formal claim both on historical and religious grounds..
I assume you would not be claiming that buddhism originated in China as a counter? It originated in India and therefore all regions that practise indian religions should belong to India which is just about as logical as your claim that "500 years ago colonial powers tore up china and we want it back"
Koh Jek Siew I would strongly advise you to head over to the nearest museum and universities..India controled vast tracts of China up to Ganxu..just saying’ if you are going to use history to claim territories that belong to other nations, China is in for a rude awakening..about damn time
Koh Jek Siew Just look at their facial features.,,,,,,,,,,ha ha acording to your logic ..japan taiwan malasiya indonasia bhutan sikkem can claim on china ..funny