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<ul><li>Two agreements, in 1962 and 1993, form the basis for the <keyword id="49399" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Line-of-Actual-Control">Line of Actual Control</keyword> (LAC). </li><li>The primary issue in the Ladakh region is that the India-China border is not delineated. </li><li>Experts argue that China’s military power far exceeds all its neighbours and it seems willing to assert it. </li></ul>The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/indian-army-on-india-china-war-in-galwan-valley-soldiers-killed/articleshow/76402297.cms?upcache=2">tensions between India and China</a> have further flared up with soldiers killed on both sides on June 15⁠— despite assurances of de-escalation from both sides⁠— in the <keyword id="9241086" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Galwan-Valley">Galwan Valley</keyword> in Ladakh, near the Line of Actual Control (the agreed border between the countries since the 1962 war). Then in 1993, both the countries signed a “Maintenance of Peace and Tranquility” agreement. The two agreements, in 1962 and 1993, form the basis for the Line of Actual Control (LAC). A battle 14,000 feet above sea level It’s been 42 days since the current round of clashes erupted in the Galwan valley along the LAC. According to the Indian Army Chief General Manoj Naravane, the incidents in Pangong Lake Ladakh on May 5 happened because of “<a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/what-explains-the-india-china-border-flare-up/article31660378.ece">aggressive behaviour on both sides</a>.” Both the countries have deployed several battalions and weapons near the disputed border areas since then. <div type="image" title="India China IANS" msid="76407320" hostid="261"></div> India and China have disputes in many areas across the length of the border between the two countries from Ladakh to the Tawang region Arunachal Pradesh, a state in northeast India. However, the primary issue in the Ladakh region is that the India-China border is not delineated. That means, India and China have overlapping lines claiming their territory in the Aksai Chin sector, which is largely an uninhabitable region. India believes that<a href="https://www.defence.gov.au/ADC/Publications/IndoPac/Richards%20final%20IPSD%20paper.pdf"> China has 38,000 square kilometers of its land</a> in the western Himalayas, including some areas in Ladakh, and another 5,180 square kilometres of land in Kashmir ceded to China by Pakistan in 1963. However, the current escalation was triggered by Chinese incursions into the Pangong Tso⁠— Tso is the local word for lake⁠— more than half of which is already under Beijing’s control. <div type="image" title="pangong lake bccl" msid="76406933" hostid="261"></div> More than a flash in the pan The 73-days standoff in Doklam in 2017 when the Indian troops and those from the People’s Liberation Army got into a scuffle over the construction of a road in a territory claimed by both China and Bhutan,India’s ally. Though the ongoing combat in Ladakh is the first between Indian and Chinese troops in 58 years, there is more to it than meets the eye. “If you look at the past few years, you have two sides building infrastructure next to each other. They are testing each other’s boundaries. And such stand-offs are becoming a pattern in their relations,” James Crabtree from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy recently <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/experts-believe-that-the-india-china-border-dispute-is-unlikely-to-turn-into-another-war-like-the-one-in-1962/articleshow/76128454.cms">said</a>. Experts argue that China’s military power far exceeds all its neighbours and the increasing tensions from the South China Sea to the Taiwan strait to Ladakh is a reflection of Beijing’s intent to assert its strength. India may also be threatened by China’s growing influence in Pakistan occupied Kashmir India and Pakistan have clashing claims over areas in Kashmir. However, parts of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, like the Gilgit-Baltistan region that India claims as its territory, are also areas that China has a claim on. “Although Beijing has let Pakistan keep Hunza for now, it has not really given up its claims on the region under the 1963 agreement. The CPEC, which enters Pakistan through Hunza, has laid the foundation for ever-larger Chinese economic influence in Gilgit-Baltistan,” <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/india-china-border-dispute-ladakh-jammu-kashmir-bifurcation-c-raja-mohan-6460681/">foreign policy expert C Raja Mohan wrote in the Indian Express</a>. CPEC stands for China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which passes through areas of Ladakh and Kashmir under Pakistan’s administration. <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/china-pakistan-economic-corridor-is-illegal-india/articleshow/73974996.cms?from=mdr">According to</a> India’s Ministry of External Affairs, the passage is illegally occupied by Pakistan. What next? A military conflict between two large nuclear powers like India and China is likely to make the whole world nervous. The recent negotiations at the level of the respective armies have evidently not managed to calm the conflict. US President Donald Trump has already offered to mediate between the two countries. China <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/donald-trump-offers-to-mediate-india-china-border-dispute/articleshow/76037792.cms">wants to settle the dispute bilaterally</a> but its recent transgressions from Ladakh to Doklam to Arunachal Pradesh may not leave the government in New Delhi with a lot of trust in the Beijing administration. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/sensex-sees-wild-swings-as-tensions-between-india-and-china-escalate-in-galwan-valley/articleshow/76403301.cms">Sensex sees wild swings as tensions between India and China escalate in Galwan valley</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/defense/news/indian-army-on-india-china-war-in-galwan-valley-soldiers-killed/articleshow/76402297.cms?upcache=2">‘Serious clashes’ between India and China⁠ in Galwan Valley — the Indian army says soldiers were killed on both sides</a>

Simply put ⁠— the India-China dispute in Ladakh’s Galwan valley along the Line of Actual Control

Since <keyword id="927718" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sino-Indian-war">Sino-Indian war</keyword> in the year 1962, the relation between two of the four largest Asian countries—which for more than 2,000 years co-existed peacefully—has become one of love and hate. The recent India visit of <keyword id="14566" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chinese-President">Chinese President</keyword> <keyword id="191809" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Xi-Jinping">Xi Jinping</keyword> has certainly tilted the relationship more towards cooperation and coexistence, especially from the perspective of trade and economic growth (despite the continuing tensions, trade between India and China has reached close to $70 billion), than belligerence and bigotry which the two sides think can only harm their interests in the region and global ambitions. 
 
The relation between India and China dates back to ancient times. In modern times, the bilateral trade off between the two Asian giants started when in early 50s India became one of the first countries to acknowledge the sovereignty of the Republic of China. But the relation was badly soured by three military stand-offs in 1962, 1967 and 1987. 
 
Friction along the 2,200-mile-long border in the Himalayan region between the two countries has been a key cause of tension. This has been aggravated by what India terms as Chinese attempt to support Pakistan, militarily and politically. On the other hand, India’s efforts for closer ties with Japan as part of its Look East policy and the US have elicited strong suspension from the Chinese end. Besides, Tibet has been a source of tension though of late both the countries have found a way to manage their differences over the issue. India has also been unhappy over China’s increasing interest in operating in the Indian Ocean. 
 
China’s refusal to endorse India’s demand for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council has also annoyed India. 
 
However, from early nineties, as the two nations aggressively expanded their economic agendas, efforts have been on to iron out kinks and create a sense of mutual trust. Xi Jinping’s visit was an attempt in this direction. 
 
The euphemism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited China five times while he was the chief minister of Gujarat, was evident when he said ‘China and India are two bodies but one spirit’. The Chinese President reciprocated by saying, "The combination of the 'world's factory' and the 'world's back office' will produce the most competitive production base and the most attractive consumer market." 
 
While Xi’s recent visit was inspired by China’s desire to limit India’s growing relationship with the US, Japan as well as other Asian countries, including Nepal and Vietnam, which Beijing considers strategically important for it, India hoped to attract significant investments from its bigger Asian counterpart. 
 
China has announced to invest $20 billion in India over the next five years (not $100 billion as earlier reported by media). 
Both the countries agree that cementing trade ties is an effective way of enhancing cooperation. India’s trade with China, one of the country’s largest trading partners, touched around $70 billion in 2013 against the $3 billion in 2000. 
 
India expects Chinese investments to give a leg-up to its creaky railway system, particularly bullet and high-speed trains and work on the metro train system across 50 cities within the country where Mass Rapid Transit System projects are planned. India is also expected to learn from Chinese expertise and achievements in mass affordable housing, a focus area for the Modi government. 
 
It is to be seen whether improved economic and trade deals will revamp the centuries old relation between the two Asian juggernauts. At least, we, Indians won’t like to face another betrayal. 
 
Image: TOI

India And China Off: To A New Start?

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The disputed borderlands between <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="India">India</keyword>, <keyword id="1334" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="China">China</keyword>, and <keyword id="3001" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Pakistan">Pakistan</keyword> are increasingly becoming a flashpoint for conflict.</li><li>The world can't ignore these growing challenges, and while the international community should look to help manage the situation, direct US involvement is probably not the best way forward, writes Abby Pokraka, a program coordinator for the Center for Arms-Control and Non-Proliferation.</li></ul>For decades, India and Pakistan have clashed over <keyword id="6354495" type="LOCATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="kashmir">Kashmir</keyword>, the mountainous region both countries claim. But to make matters more complicated, China has a stake in the area, too. The Aksai Chin region — located between Kashmir and Tibet — is under Chinese control and has been a source of conflict between India and China since 1962.The borderlands between these three nuclear-armed states is increasingly a flashpoint for conflict. The international community ignores these growing challenges at its peril and should be looking for ways to help manage potential crises in the region.And while the United States can play a role, in this particular instance, direct US involvement is probably not the best way forward.<div type="image" title="Kashmiri women walk past an Indian security personnel during restrictions after the scrapping of the special constitutional status for Kashmir by the government, in Srinagar, August 11, 2019. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui" height="2333" width="3500" msid="78409592" hostid="261"></div>The Kashmir region has been disputed since British India was <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/south_asia/2002/india_pakistan/timeline/1947.stm">partitioned</a> into India and Pakistan in 1947. The first Indo-Pakistani war began after armed Pakistani tribesmen invaded Kashmir. The ceasefire agreement on January 1, 1949 established the Line of Control (LoC) — the de facto border between Indian-controlled and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir.The second Indo-Pakistani war took place in <a href="https://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968/india-pakistan-war">August 1965</a> after a series of clashes across the LoC, with a third war starting when Pakistan erupted in civil war in 1971.Tensions only escalated when India became a nuclear power in 1974 and Pakistan in 1998. Conflict across the LoC continues today, with the most recent clash occurring in February 2019. It was the deadliest altercation in three decades, with <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/pulwama-attack">40 members</a> of India's police force killed.India and China have a similarly violent history over the Line of Actual Control, which divides Chinese-controlled territory from Indian-controlled territory high up in the Himalayas. After the 1962 Sino-Indian War, an uneasy truce was established, but regular conflicts create a simmering tension between the two countries.The Indian government <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/india/north/story/chinese-troops-had-dismantled-bunkers-on-indian-side-of-line-of-actual-control-in-august-2011-160035-2013-04-25">claims</a> that Chinese troops cross the LAC multiple times a year, leading to increased volatility between the nations. Chinese forces killed <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/16/world/asia/india-china-border.html">20 Indian</a> soldiers in hand-to-hand combat along the border in June.<div type="image" title="Indian soldiers troops Himalayas Ladakh" height="1666" width="2500" msid="78409594" hostid="261"></div>This was the deadliest confrontation between the two nations in four decades, and negotiations <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/02/asia/india-china-himalayas-border-intl-hnk/index.html">did not</a> diffuse the situation. Tempers flared again when China and India <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/02/asia/india-china-himalayas-border-intl-hnk/index.html">accused</a> each other of illegally trespassing on the other's side and firing warning shots in early September, which would be the<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/08/world/asia/india-china-border.html"> first time guns were used</a> amid tensions. Little has been done to resolve any of this.China was drawn into a dispute between India and Pakistan when India revoked Kashmir's <a href="https://lite.cnn.com/en/article/h_e57b0ab399a59b28e5373e2fd0890cfa">autonomy</a> in August 2019 and wanted to <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/2251770/kashmirs-role-boiling-china-india-tensions">incorporate</a> parts of "Xinjiang and Tibet into its Ladakh union territory," which China believes violates its dominion due to its occupation of Tibet. It appears that over the last year the situation in Kashmir has not gotten better."Mass <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/08/05/india-revoked-kashmirs-autonomy-year-ago-what-has-happened-since-then/">disenfranchisement</a> of Kashmiri Muslims, deteriorating security, economic backsliding and a contentious political agenda" negatively contributes to the tension between India and Pakistan, exacerbating the historical friction in the region.It seems clear that after decades of poor relations, the tensions in this part of the world may reach a <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/2251770/kashmirs-role-boiling-china-india-tensions">boiling point</a>.<div type="image" title="india kashmir.JPG" height="1373" width="2000" msid="78409596" hostid="261"></div>Finding a solution to these half-century conflicts seems daunting, but it is necessary. While many nations have fought throughout history, a conflict between nuclear-armed states carries an unbearable risk of escalation.To start, these countries can take small steps to stabilize the security of the region and pave the way for better relations. Starting a dialogue, bilateral or trilateral, can improve communication in the longer term, which can help reduce the likelihood of conflict.Establishing crisis communications was an important step the United States and the Soviet Union took in the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and de-escalation practices the two countries implemented in the early 1960s remained in place through the end of the Cold War.A third party could help facilitate regional discussions. Given its history in the region, the United States might have seemed like a good option for such facilitation, but that is not the case at this time.The Trump administration's <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-prime-minister-khan-islamic-republic-pakistan-bilateral-meeting/">offer</a> to mediate negotiations between India and Pakistan in July 2019 was generally ignored. Beyond that, the administration's own growing Cold War posture towards Beijung has deteriorated whatever diplomatic leverage it might have had in this situation. This week, President Trump took aim at China before the United Nations, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/22/world/americas/UN-Trump-Xi-China-coronavirus.html">blaming it for the global COVID pandemic</a>.At this point, there is no reason China would see the United States as a desirable mediator for any regional conflict.<div type="image" title="Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping" height="2522" width="4800" msid="78409600" hostid="261"></div>Moreover, it may not be America's responsibility to step into the void. Perhaps there is an opportunity for other nations to take that lead. China and India both have substantial trade relationships with <a href="https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/russia-hopes-sco-may-facilitate-indo-pak-talks-too-138273">Russia</a>, which may be willing to moderate discussions.Of course, Russia's own differences with China might complicate such an effort. The United Kingdom has made efforts in recent years to better its relationship with <a href="https://www.britishcouncil.org/research-policy-insight/insight-articles/india-and-uk-2050-vision">India</a> and <a href="https://nation.com.pk/10-Sep-2020/pakistan-uk-vow-to-enhance-relations">Pakistan</a>, putting London in the position to be a potential mediator. The Gulf states, with the help of the United States, have <a href="https://www.voanews.com/south-central-asia/us-gulf-countries-helped-ease-india-pakistan-tensions">diffused</a> tensions between India and Pakistan in the past, so perhaps they could offer further assistance.In the meantime, friction among China, India, and Pakistan continues to grow. The only way to diffuse the tension and prevent destructive escalation is through diplomacy.Other countries need to step up and work to reduce the hostilities. Make no mistake, a large-scale, regional conflict among nuclear-armed states would have global consequences.

Tensions between 3 nuclear-armed powers are rising toward the boiling point

<ul><li>The Indian government will honour melody queen <keyword id="31278" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lata-Mangeshkar">Lata Mangeshkar</keyword> with ‘Daughter Of The Nation’ award on her birthday on 28 September. </li><li>Her song ‘aye mere watan ke logon’ dedicated to the martyrs of the Sino-Indian war moved the then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru to tears. </li><li>She was awarded with the status of most recorded artist in the history of Indian music in Guinness Record in 1974. </li><li>Lata Mangeshkar was also honoured with Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in 2001.</li></ul>The Indian government is celebrating melody queen Lata Mangeshkar’s 90th birthday by bestowing a special honour — ‘Daughter Of The Nation’. Her birthday celebration will include the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/music/news/lata-mangeshkars-birthday-to-be-celebrated-with-a-special-event/articleshow/71275034.cms">launch</a> of the book ‘Lata’ and a day-long session of 91 Hindi-Marathi songs. She also sang the patriotic song ‘Ae mere watan ke logon’ in 1963 during the Indo-China war, which moved India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to tears. Miracle of God The Indore-born singer hails from a family of musicians and artists, has no plans of slowing down. She has been singing for the last seven decades and famously claimed to sing until her last breath. Popularly known as didi or sister, Mangeshkar kicked off her music career with a Marathi song ‘NaachuYaa Gade, Khelu Saari Mani Haus Bhaari’ at the age of 13, five years before independence. Soon, her mellifluous voice mixed with talent brought her immense popularity also for being the singer who is “never off-key”. Famous actor Dilip Kumar once said that Latha’s voice is as spectacular as a God’s miracle. Her work spans across historic films like Mughal-E-Azam to popular hits like Dilwale Dulhaniya le Jaayenge, singing playback for actors from Madhubala to Kajal. She has been awarded with Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in 2001. Her other achievements include <keyword id="100507" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Padma-Bhushan">Padma Bhushan</keyword>, <keyword id="15575" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Padma-Vibhushan">Padma Vibhushan</keyword>, and <keyword id="54010" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dadasaheb-Phalke-award">Dadasaheb Phalke Award</keyword>. Social media controversy The singer who resides at Peddar Road in Mumbai, has also been a part of her share of controversies. She was heavily trolled for her comments on the video of Ranu Mondal — a poor lady who sang on a railway platform to earn her living, saying she should be “original.” Lata who was known as a good luck for many decades in the industry, also shares a turbulent relationship with her equally famous sister, <keyword id="6441118" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Asha-Bhosle">Asha Bhosle</keyword>, who is also a prolific singer. For one, Bhosle broker Lata’s Guinness record as most recorded artist in the history of Indian music, which she held since 1974. In 2011, Bhosle took over the mantle. The rift first started when Asha married Ganpatrao Bhosle, a man 15 years older to her. Lata once claimed that Bhosle stopped the two sisters from meeting. However, the marriage ended in a divorce but Lata and Asha’s relationship remained strained. During Asha’s struggling times in the industry, Lata also disapproved of Asha’s relationship with music director O P Nayyar. So much so that Lata stopped singing for Nayyar altogether. Movie producer Singing is her first love, but Lata has many other talents too. She had composed music for Marathi movies but was too conscious of giving her name to it, and chose to keep it under wraps, under a pseudonym. But the secret came out when the movies she composed for won an award for Best Music, requiring her to receive the recognition on stage. She told the story in a book called ‘Lata in her own voice’, adding that she was too busy recording that she could not focus on composing. She had also produced three Hindi films and a Marathi film. Lata who has never married, likes to read Hindi writer Maithili Sharan Gupt in her free time. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/lata-mangeshkar-to-be-honoured-with-daughter-of-the-nation-title-as-she-turns-90-this-month/articleshow/71006645.cms">Lata Mangeshkar to be honoured with 'Daughter of the Nation' title as she turns 90 this month</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/here-are-the-5-richest-families-in-india-who-together-hold-a-fortune-of-922600-crore/articleshow/71323921.cms">Here are the 5 richest families in India — who together hold a fortune of ₹9,22,600 crore</a>

‘Daughter of the nation’ Lata Mangeshkar turns 90 and here’s taking a look at her career of 77 years

Ranjit Singh, the author, is a columnist who writes on internal security issues. In recent years, China has increasingly leaned on Pakistan in South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region to propagate its foreign, economic and military policies through various initiatives like <keyword id="6363059" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="cpec">CPEC</keyword>, <keyword id="387907" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="BRI">BRI</keyword> etc. Michel Berkley of the Belfer Centre at Harvard university has succinctly identified the main interests that China has in Pakistan; firstly, preserve Pakistan as viable military competitor to India; secondly, use Pakistan as an overland trade and energy corridor; and thirdly, use Pakistan's cooperation in severing links between Uighur separatists in Western China and Islamists in Pakistan. Quite clearly, China looks at Pakistan as a supporter, a facilitator and promoter of her national interest. More recently, this relationship has been witnessing a deeper understanding and transforming into a strong military relationship. Yet what defies reason is - why does China refuse to sign an alliance with Pakistan? Historical Background Pakistan began flirting with China after 1962. Ayub Khan realised that the US was not a credible ally, more so when the US agreed to support India after the 1962 Sino-Indian war. Pakistan was unable to capitalise on a weak India. The Treaty of Shaksgam in 1963, wherein Pakistan parted with 5,180 sq km of territory of the erstwhile Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir (now UT of Ladakh), set into motion the beginning of a deep and mutual relationship based almost entirely on the classic policy of balancing - 'my enemy's enemy is my friend'. Over the last five decades, Pakistan has been a reliable ally to China. China has never forgotten the role of former Pakistan President Yahya khan as the messenger between US President Richard Nixon and Mao Tse Tung which resulted in the US-China rapprochement in 1970. Ever since, Pakistan has been a staunch supporter of China in the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC), fending off any anti-China sentiments, especially with reference to Chinese atrocities in Xinjiang. The OIC, a powerful grouping of 57 countries, has surprisingly been a mute spectator to the horrors perpetuated by the CCP on the Uighurs and Sinicisation of Xinjiang. Pakistan has also been an ardent supporter of China in the United Nations, providing unwavering support to China during the crisis in South China Sea and in its 'One China' policy on Taiwan. In return, Pakistan has benefited from the Chinese largesse. As Chinese aspirations of global power gained traction, her expanding footprint in South Asia made Pakistan the centre of its South Asia policy. Pakistan supported Chinese entry as an observer in SAARC which was reciprocated by Pakistan's entry into SCO. The flagship Belt &amp; Road Initiative (BRI) of Xi Jinping had become the cornerstone of Chinese economic policy, coupled with a military strategy of increasing its global footprint in Asia, Africa and Europe. Among the six sub-initiatives that comprise the BRI, the most successful has been the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is entirely routed through Pakistan and the UT of Ladakh. The $64 billion CPEC has already become an issue of contention within Pakistan. Falling short of targets and wracked by incessant attacks on Chinese engineers, staff and assets by Baloch nationalists and Gilgit-Baltistan based local groups, China has put pressure on Pakistan to ensure its success. Pakistan has raised a 15,000-strong para-military force to protect the CPEC from marauding Baloch and its tribes of GB who see CPEC as a loss of their sovereignty, dignity and aspiration. Much to the dislike of the Chinese, the CPEC has also become synonymous with corruption with the head of the CPEC, a Pakistani General, getting involved in corruption scandals directly implicating him and his family. Attacks by Baloch nationalists have forced China to deploy Private Military Contractors (PMCs) to protect its projects. Recently, China has replaced its top UFWD official as the new envoy to ensure the success of the CPEC and salvage 'its reputation'. China has also replaced the US as the main arms and equipment supplier to Pakistan. In the last decade, Chinese share in the Pakistan's military rose from 13 per cent to 63 per cent while that of the US has almost come to naught. The entire nuclear programme of Pakistan is China supported, thanks to the AQ Khan scandal who stole technology for China in return for nuclear weapons. Pakistan's missile programme is entirely China centric with its arsenal being direct copies of the Chinese Nodong and Dong-Feng series. The tank factory at Taxila, the JF-17 fighter aircraft joint production, the upgrades of the T-59 &amp;T-69 series tanks, supply of AEW&amp;CS aircraft, F-22 P destroyers of the Pakistan navy, Air Defence guns, radars etc. are all of Chinese origin. The recently inaugurated Beidou Navigational System (BNS) has been provided to Pakistan's armed forces replacing the GPS. All this ensures that the Pakistan Army is now dependent on China for arms supplies, spares and relief/upgrades in perpetuity. Chinese and Pakistani militaries exercise regularly and have a robust calendar of annual engagements aside from military exchanges in courses, training, visits by military delegations, naval port of calls and joint seminars by think-tanks. Gwadar is China's next base in the Indian Ocean. It is all set to accommodate a Chinese population of 500,000 in a special international port city, which will include Chinese naval personnel and expeditionary forces like the PLA marine force. Gwadar, by its location, provides a strategic outpost to China to monitor the Straits of Hormuz which has the US Third Fleet based in Bahrain and Indian Navy's Western Command on its western seaboard. Despite all these mutual interests, China has still not signed an alliance with Pakistan. That clearly sends two messages to the environment: * China does not want to make any binding commitment to Pakistan. Financial, military equipment, diplomatic support is a 'Yes' but direct intervention and sending Han Chinese body bags for Pakistan's cause is a big 'No'. * China does not trust Pakistan as a reliable ally. The Chinese continue to be cautious about the all powerful Pakistan Army and the chaotic political landscape in Pakistan. Many Chinese argue that China does not believe in the alliances, yet Chinese have signed a binding treaty with North Korea in 1961. And they are fully committed to that alliance. This clearly amplifies one bitter truth. No matter how deep the relationship, there is still a measure of 'trust deficit' in the relationship. One cannot grudge the Chinese from holding back because Pakistan's chequered history is replete with flip-flops that have branded Pakistan as unstable and wavering. In sum, Pakistan is at best a tool in the Chinese grand strategy of becoming a world superpower by 2050. By creating dependence in perpetuity on China by way of land, unpayable loans, infrastructure development, industry and Chinese weaponry and spares, Pakistan is totally subservient and beholden to China. As Hussain Haqqani very vividly describes this relationship: "For China, Pakistan is a low cost secondary deterrent to India... for Pakistan, China is a high value guarantor of security against India." In effect, Pakistan has just become China's newest 'vassal'. 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OPINION: The bitter truth about the friendship between China and Pakistan

The catch phrase of India’s diplomacy with China in the 1950’s was ‘Hindi-Chini bhai bhai,’ but it lost its essence soon after the Sino-Indian war in 1962. Today, the ongoing border issue with China has been creating strife in the <keyword id="388574" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Indo-China">Indo-China</keyword> relationship, but the aim to achieve high economic growth and regional cooperation has tied the two nations together. 
 The two countries are likely to enter into a landmark agreement in order to setup a stage for cooperation between India states and Chinese provinces during <keyword id="6354814" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="prime-minister-Narendra-Modi">Prime Minister Narendra Modi</keyword>'s upcoming China visit. This will help the countries to foster bilateral trade and investments, as revealed in an Economic Times report. 
 
Le Yucheng, China's Ambassador to India, told ET, "The two countries hope to agree to create a platform that will enhance cooperation between chief ministers of India and governors of Chinese provinces. This could be concluded during PM Modi's visit to China in May." 
This new plan that both the nations are likely to come up will be similar to the platforms that China has with the US and Russia to strengthen its relations. 
 
"States and provinces are engines of growth and this platform would increase bilateral trade and investments, and people-to-people contact," the envoy told ET. 
 
The two countries are likely to ink a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase the number of cities in the list of sister-city cooperation between India and China during Modi's maiden trip to China as PM, Le added. 
 During <keyword id="1604096" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Chinese-President-Xi-Jinping">Chinese President Xi Jinping</keyword>'s visit to India in 2014, India and China has signed a bilateral agreement to make the two metropolitan cities, <keyword id="6368000" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Shanghai">Shanghai</keyword> and Mumbai, as sister cities. Also during the same visit, the two nations also inked another agreement in Gujarat to make Ahmedabad, a sister city of <keyword id="106384" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Guangzhou">Guangzhou</keyword>, which is a leading commercial centre in China. 
(Image: www.thebricspost.com)

​Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai. Know what kind of a partnership India and China are planning to ink

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">AP Photo/Manish SwarupIndian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the BRICS summit in Goa, India, October 16, 2016.</div></div></div><ul><li>Indian and Chinese troops squared off high in the Himalayas during a 73-day standoff in summer 2017.</li><li>That border dispute never came to open blows, and the two countries have both tried to mend ties since.</li><li>But the border is still disputed, and both sides are still watching each other warily in an area that could easily flare up again.</li></ul>At the end of August 2017, Indian and Chinese troops backed away from a 73-day standoff high in the eastern Himalayas, where their borders meet those of Bhutan.The two countries, both nuclear-armed and among the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/most-powerful-militaries-in-the-world-ranked-2018-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most powerful militaries</a> on the planet, have tried to mend ties since then, but the rivalry remains, and the small swath of land they nearly came to blows over last summer remains a flash point.The spat between began in mid-June, when Bhutan <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/26/world/asia/dolam-plateau-china-india-bhutan.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noticed</a> Chinese personnel trying to extend an unpaved road on the Doklam Plateau, which China calls Donglang, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-and-india-and-doklam-2017-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a mountainous area</a> reaching as high as 14,000 feet.China <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/26/world/asia/dolam-plateau-china-india-bhutan.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the construction was an internal affair, as it took place on its own territory, but Bhutan alerted India, which sent troops to halt the work.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">ReutersA map of Donglang, or Doklam, a disputed area between China, India, and Bhutan.</div></div></div>While India <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/28/world/asia/china-india-standoff-withdrawal.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">does not claim</a> the disputed territory, a 34-square-mile chunk of the plateau, it sees it as a buffer zone for a narrow strip of land called the "chicken neck," a valuable link between its northeast and the rest of the country.Chinese and Indian troops squared off just a few hundred feet apart.A few hundred troops from each side were believed to be arrayed around the construction site. About <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-and-india-and-doklam-2017-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">3,000 troops</a> from each country were thought to be in the general area around Doklam. Other military units were thought to be in the area, though exact numbers were not clear, especially for Chinese forces.India said it was <a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/geopolitics/article/2103881/dispatch-doklam-indians-dig-long-haul-standoff-china" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acting on behalf</a> of its ally, Bhutan, which does not have formal ties with China, but the showdown reminded many of the 1962 Sino-Indian war, which started over a border dispute."China has been active in trying to build roads and infrastructure in this strip of territory disputed by Bhutan and China, but what happened last year was they tried to extend a road they had built further south," said Jeff Smith, a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation's Asian Studies Center.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Desmond BoylanChinese and Indian border guards at the Nathu La mountain pass, between Tibet and the tiny northeastern Indian state of Sikkim, July 6, 2006.</div></div></div>"That prompted the Indian military to intervene, because it was starting to draw the Chinese down further south, into territory they claimed but even closer to an area that would give them a strategic advantage in any sort of conflict," Smith said.That position would "give them the high ground in an area near the ... Bhutan-India-China border," Smith added. "And India sort of drew a red line and said 'no.'"The standoff intensified day by day. Beijing carried out military exercises in Tibet shortly after it began. Indian troops reinforced their positions, <a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/geopolitics/article/2103881/dispatch-doklam-indians-dig-long-haul-standoff-china" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> building bunkers, bringing in artillery and light tanks, and laying land mines to counter a potential Chinese attack.But both sides <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/28/world/asia/china-india-standoff-withdrawal.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">had reason</a> to seek a way out of the standoff at Doklam. Talks continued, and the confrontation ended on August 28, 2017, when New Delhi and Beijing agreed to an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-india-and-china-agree-to-disengagement-along-disputed-frontier-indian-government-statement-2017-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"expeditious disengagement"</a> of their forces.A few weeks after the disengagement, Chinese President Xi Jinping <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-chinas-xi-wants-to-put-relations-with-india-on-right-track-xinhua-2017-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he wanted to put his country's relationship with India on the "right track." In early 2018, India appeared to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-dalai-lama-faces-cold-shoulder-as-india-looks-to-improve-china-ties-2018-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">distance itself</a> from the Dalai Lama, seeking more <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-Relations/India-uses-rumor-of-Dalai-Lama-s-ill-health-to-mend-China-ties" target="_blank" rel="noopener">conciliatory</a> ties with China.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">AP/ Anupam NathAn Indian girl with an Indian flag at the Indo-China border in Bumla, 15,700 feet above sea level in Arunachal Pradesh, India, October 21, 2012.</div></div></div>This summer, India and China agreed to <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/wuhan-effect-india-china-to-jointly-train-afghan-diplomats/articleshow/65003167.cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">jointly train</a> Afghan diplomats, and Delhi said it would not <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/india-says-wont-gang-up-against-china-in-indo-pacific-1882875" target="_blank" rel="noopener">seek to align</a> against Beijing elsewhere. This month, Chinese <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">Defense</keyword> Minister Wei Fenghe is in India, where <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/r-china-defense-minister-meets-indian-pm-as-ties-warm-further-2018-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he praised</a> their relations as a friendship dating to ancient times.But activity has also continued in Doklam."The two sides disengaged from the site of the standoff, but they did not withdraw, and there are still a large number of Chinese and Indian troops near the standoff site," said Smith, author of "<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cold-Peace-China-India-Rivalry-Twenty-First/dp/1498520928" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cold Peace</a>," about the rivalry between China and India in the 21st century."China has continued construction on what it claims is its side of the China-Bhutan border," he added, "but it continues construction in territory ... disputed between China and Bhutan but not south of where India has drawn as a red line."Both sides appear to have bolstered the forces they have stationed around Doklam.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">US Air Force/Wikimedia CommonsA member of the Indian air force marshals in a Sukhoi Su-30 MKI on the flight line at Lajes airfield in the Azores, July 13, 2008.</div></div></div>Imagery <a href="https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/preparing-rematch-top-world" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reviewed earlier this year</a> by intelligence firm Stratfor showed that in late 2017 and early 2018, India greatly increased its deployment of Su-30MKI combat aircraft to the Siliguri Bagdogra and Hasimara airbases.The Su-30MKI is India's top-of-the-line fighter and is <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/india-successfully-test-fires-brahmos-from-sukhoi-30-fighter-aircraft/articleshow/61751675.cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">able to fire</a> the supersonic BrahMos cruise missile.Even more activity was visible around the more advanced facilities at the Chinese airbases in Lhasa and Shigatse, including airfield upgrades and a large presence of helicopters, early-warning and command aircraft, parts of the HQ-9 long-range surface-to-air missile, and unmanned aerial vehicles. (China puts <a href="https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/preparing-rematch-top-world" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more assets</a> at these bases because, unlike India, it does not have facilities closer to the border area.)Doklam "does remain a potential flare-up spot," Smith said, with the Chinese in particular looking for an edge.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Google MapsDeployments and activity at Chinese and Indian airbases around the Doklam Plateau increased in late 2017 and early 2018.</div></div></div>"I imagine the Chinese are not pleased with how events unfolded last year, and there are some who felt like they were somewhat embarrassed by India," Smith said. "So I'm sure they're redoubling their efforts down there to ensure that something like that doesn't happen again."A lack of clear short-term gains to be had make it unlikely China "will push the envelope in Doklam," he added, but Beijing may be preparing its forces in order to be "in a much better position tactically" in case of another confrontation there."It's peaceful now, but it's still volatile," Smith said. "There are still a lot of troops on both sides, nearby, watching each other very closely." <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/asia-earth-ice-melted-rising-ocean-coastline-china-india-2015-3">Animated map shows what would happen to Asia if all the Earth's ice melted</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Tensions are still simmering a year after the world's 2 biggest countries almost clashed over a border at the top of the world

The world's three largest arms importers - India, China, and Pakistan - all share borders with one another, some of which are in dispute. These disagreements have occasionally led to armed conflict, like the ongoing dispute over the status of Kashmir, and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Indian_War">1962 Sino-Indian war</a>.
These disputes, and a host of other regional factors, are fueling the world's biggest conventional arms race.<div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image">Jeremy BenderThe crosshatched sections on the map denote border disputes.</div></div>
India is currently the world's largest arms importer. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, its weapons imports <a href="http://www.sipri.org/media/pressreleases/2014/AT_march_2014">rose by 111%</a> between the 2004-2008 and the 2009-2013 periods.
From 2009 to 2013, India accounted for 14% of all international arms imports. 
India's weapons imports are almost three times larger than that of its neighbors and rivals, Pakistan and China. China and Pakistan each account for an additional <a href="http://books.sipri.org/files/FS/SIPRIFS1403.pdf">5% of global arms imports</a>. Notably, Pakistan receives 54% of its arms from China. 
<div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image">Screenshot/<a href="http://books.sipri.org/files/FS/SIPRIFS1403.pdf">books.sipri.org</a></div></div>
India likely feels the need to arm itself in light of some of the long-simmering tensions it shares with its neighbors. India and Pakistan have taken steps to increase dialogue in recent years. But they have been at each other's throats for almost <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/kashmirtheforgottenconflict/2011/06/2011615113058224115.html">their entire history</a> as independent nations over the undecided status of Kashmir. The unsettled border has played a large part in the three wars India and Pakistan have so far fought. Subsets of the Pakistani government also <a href="http://www.propublica.org/topic/mumbai-terror-attacks/">support militants</a> who have launched terrorist attacks inside of India, like the deadly <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/27/world/asia/27mumbai.html?pagewanted=all">2008 assault</a> on Mumbai.
India's relationship with China is also rocky. The two fought a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Indian_War">brief border war</a> in 1962 that China decisively won. Despite the outcome, the two countries continue to lay <a href="http://inef.uni-due.de/cms/files/report107.pdf">competing claims</a> over the Indian Himalayan province of Arunachal Pradesh, which China calls South Tibet. 
India and China are perhaps natural rivals - emerging superpowers that are right on each other's doorsteps. But India feels specifically threatened by a growing Chinese military presence throughout the Indian Ocean region. China has invested in military installations in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar. Indian General Deepak Kapoor, a former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, has <a href="http://www.sipri.org/media/blogs/eps-blog/china-india-and-the-three-cs">referred to these installations</a> as China's "string of pearls" surrounding India. 
India receives 75% of its arms imports from Russia. These imports in the 2009 to 2013 period have included a nuclear-powered submarine, 90 Su-30 MKI combat aircraft, an aircraft carrier, and 27 MiG-29K jets for use on that aircraft carrier. India is also a partner in Russia's development of a fifth-generation aircraft, <a href="https://medium.com/war-is-boring/the-indians-hate-their-new-russian-made-stealth-fighter-d89b9ce721de">the T-50</a>.

The World's Three Largest Arms Importers All Border One Another

<ul class="generic-article__summary--ul content--ul"><li class="generic-article__summary--li content--li">West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress woos Kolkata’s Chinese community as it faces a tough fight from Narendra Modi’s BJP</li><li class="generic-article__summary--li content--li">Though they do not have the numbers to influence government policy, the head of the Chinese Indian Association says voting is an important activity if you want to feel part of a country</li></ul> Restaurateur Monica Liu, 66, is an ethnic Chinese but has lived in the Indian city of Kolkata all her life. She and her family are among the estimated 6,000 Indian citizens of Chinese origin living in the country – with about 5,000 of them living in Kolkata, many with Hakka heritage. They are mostly descendants of those who fled to India in the middle of the 19th century to escape turmoil caused by the clash between British forces and Qing dynasty troops known as the <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/2075509/dark-legacy-britains-opium-wars-still-felt-today-amid-fight-against" class="link-text">Opium Wars</a> and the bloody rebellion against dynasty known as the Taiping Uprising. The Chinese community has long been marginalised by Indian authorities despite their presence for over 200 years. Those of Chinese origin born before 1950 cannot get Indian citizenship, leaving them holding on to Chinese and British passports while some have ended up being stateless after deciding not to renew their temporary resident permits. <h3 style="margin-bottom: 2.35714rem; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 300; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 1.71429rem; line-height: 2.42857rem; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; display: inherit;"><a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3010741/indian-election-explained-how-narendra-modis-good-days-turned" class="link-text">Indian election: how Modi’s ‘good days’ turned bad </a></h3>But for those who are citizens, more have decided to participate in politics after community leaders began mobilising people to get their voter identity cards in the last two decades, said Bean Ching Law, president of the Chinese Indian Association. Kolkata voters will go to the ballot booth on Sunday, the last day of polling in <a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3010741/indian-election-explained-how-narendra-modis-good-days-turned" class="link-text">India’s mammoth six-week general election</a> . In recent weeks, election wall graffiti in Chinese, requesting votes for the candidate of the Trinamool Congress party (TMC), appeared on the walls of Kolkata’s Chinatown in the Tangra district. Trinamool runs the state government in West Bengal, where Kolkata is situated.SUBSCRIBE TO THIS WEEK IN ASIA Get updates direct to your inbox Members of the community say it’s the first time they’ve seen this sort of outreach to them. Most think that it is an extension of the Trinamool’s grass roots-level growth in the state. After all, no one from the party has approached the elders of the Chinese community for votes. Also, Kolkata North, the constituency within which the Chinatown falls, will see tough fight between the candidates of the TMC and <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/narendra-modi" class="link-text">Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s</a> Bharatiya Janata Party, making every vote a crucial one for either side.A history of exclusion Law, a 49-year-old entrepreneur, has fought for the rights for the Chinese community since his return from the US in 2007. One of his strategies has been to attempt to obtain Overseas Indian Citizenship (OCI) for those born before 1950. The OCI, which gives foreign citizens permission to work and live in India indefinitely, will help such individuals avoid having to spend around US$156 annually to renew a permit allowing them to stay in the country. “However, these applications were rejected [by authorities] saying those individuals never showed the need to become an Indian citizen,” he says. “This is false: people applied for passports in the 1960s and were rejected outright. In fact, it was this rejection letter that helped them get other countries’ passports.” Law has been encouraging the community to vote. “Voting is the most important activity if you want to feel part of a country. It differentiates you from a person from another country. It is a sign that you belong here…..For any other Indian, why is it important to vote? The same reasons apply to us,” he said. <h3 style="margin-bottom: 2.35714rem; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 300; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 1.71429rem; line-height: 2.42857rem; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; display: inherit;"><a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3010707/india-elections-bjp-may-need-allies-narendra-modi-drove-away" class="link-text">BJP may need the allies Modi drove away </a></h3>But he is pragmatic, pointing out that they do not have the numbers to influence government policy, even about themselves. “[This is the] weakness of democracy as far as microscopic minorities are concerned. Democracy is always about the majority; the minuscule minority is dirt,” he said. For Liu, the memory of how her family was snatched from their homes and thrown in prison for five-and-a-half years after the <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1452590/1962-sino-indian-war-still-stirs-bitter-controversy" class="link-text">Sino-Indian war</a> , remains.The clash between tens of thousands of Indian and Chinese troops took place between October and November 1962, after a series of border incidents sparked by India’s decision to grant asylum to the Dalai Lama after a failed Tibetan rebellion against Chinese rule. China declared a ceasefire on November 19 but that was when the danger began for India’s ethnic Chinese residents. Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal, greets her supporters in Kolkata. Photo: Reuters Liu recalls how her mother saw it coming, her intuition sharpened by listening for Japanese bomber aircraft and running for cover in her village in southern China during the Second World War. “She packed bags full of clothes for each of my siblings and tasked me with equipping them with the bags, when the police came for us,” Liu said. It was 5am when the police knocked on the door and explained that all ethnic Chinese were being rounded up, days before India’s Parliament passed a law that allowed the detention of people assessed to be “of hostile origin”. The Indian government has never released the numbers, so estimates on the number of detainees vary: of the roughly 40,000 Chinese-origin individuals in India at the time, between 3,000 and 10,000 were detained, although no one was successfully prosecuted. Mass deportations to China and migrations to countries like Canada, the US and Australia, mostly from the affluent members of community who were Hakka, followed the detentions. Liu’s family was offered deportation to China soon after internment but her father chose to remain in India. “My mom wanted to go. My daddy didn’t want to. Dad said, “I have nobody in China. When I go back, what will I do?,”she said. <h3 style="margin-bottom: 2.35714rem; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 300; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 1.71429rem; line-height: 2.42857rem; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; display: inherit;"><a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3009682/exploiting-islamophobia-election-winning-tool-india" class="link-text">Exploiting Islamophobia: an election-winning tool in India </a></h3>Indian filmmaker Rafeeq Ellias compared the Chinese internment in India to when Americans of Japanese origin were detained during the Second World War. “People have not even spoken about their experiences even to their own children,” said Rafeeq, who made a documentary, The Legend of Fat Mama, about Kolkata’s Chinese community in 2005. Ellias has also written about the need for the Indian government to acknowledge the internment. The Japanese Americans documented their experience and were able to obtain an apology from the US government. The ethnic Chinese in India have been unable to do that. “They have been so marginalised and so few in number and the young people have all migrated at the first opportunity,” he says. “They don’t even have a sense of history or continuity.” Sinking roots But things could be changing. Singapore-based Rinkoo Bhowmick, who founded the CHA project, said she saw younger ethnic Chinese choosing to remain in India instead of migrating to countries like Canada, the US and Australia because the economy was doing well. The CHA project has been attempting a revival of Kolkata’s Old Chinatown in the Tiretta Bazaar area, which is where the first migrants settled, before pollution regulations forced the creation of a New Chinatown in 1910 in Tangra, about 7km away. The project plans to transform the Old Chinatown into a vibrant public space through events and heritage conservation. “The decision of these youngsters to stay back should eventually give rise to a sense of belonging,” Bhowmick said. Others like Thomas Chen, 42, joint secretary of the Indian Chinese Association (ICA), one of the many organisations for ethnic Chinese, have been working to promote Chinese culture and heritage among Indian society. Chen speaks with pride of teaching a contingent of the Indian Army a Mandarin song about friendship. <h3 style="margin-bottom: 2.35714rem; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 300; font-stretch: inherit; font-size: 1.71429rem; line-height: 2.42857rem; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; display: inherit;"><a href="https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/geopolitics/article/2104347/imagine-what-china-and-india-can-do-together" class="link-text">Imagine what China and India can do together </a></h3>“I also wrote a Chinese song on the Mid-Autumn Festival for the Indian Chinese Association. It was telecast twice last year on China Central Television.” The now-defunct project of the ICA, which has only 10 members, also saw the association organise Chinese-language classes for Indian companies Tata Iron and Steel, and Infosys. Robert Hsu, secretary of the ICA, said he knew of community members who were uncomfortable at how the Indian media took a jingoistic line on the 2017 <a href="https://www.scmp.com/topics/china-india-border-dispute" class="link-text">border stand-off between the armies of India and China</a> . Indian soldiers wanted China to stop construction of a road extension project in a location claimed by its ally Bhutan as well as Beijing.But Hsu pointed to the organisation’s name and said it served to show that for India’s ethnic Chinese, “it has always been about being Indian first”. Indian PM Narendra Modi at an election rally in Mathurapur, south of Kolkata. Photo: AP For Monica Liu, who now owns five busy restaurants in Kolkata, the state came knocking at her door again some years back but it was for a more pleasant reason: the then-chief minister of West Bengal wanted to dine at one of her eateries. Asked about her feelings about India and her identity, Liu offered a food analogy. “People always ask me: is your food Chinese Indian or Indian Chinese,” she says. “I reply that my food is exactly Chinese. Is there Indian masala in my food? No. The only thing is that we add more of some ingredients to enhance the flavour for the Indian customer.” Her Chinese identity is rooted in India, she continued. “Indian people have never asked me whether I am Chinese. But I am asked this when I visit China. I tell them that I am Chinese, my parents were from China, I was born and brought up in India, I am doing in business in India and my features are Chinese. I then tell them they shouldn’t be asking me that question,” she said.

India election: how will the Chinese community factor play out in Kolkata?

Last week, <keyword id="1334" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="China">China</keyword> and <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> signed a border pact to ease tensions along the disputed border dubbed the Line of Actual Control (LAC). 
The pact is largely intended to prevent a military conflict, improve communication between the two sides, encourage cooperation on border-related activities such as combating the smuggling of contraband goods, and promote better relations between troops, like joined celebrations of major holidays, <a href="http://www.indianexpress.com/news/border-pact-with-china-does-not-tie-india-s-hands/1186442/">reports the Indian Express.</a>
Experts aren't too enthused about the pact, viewing it as a temporary fix. "So many of the current problems arise from the line of actual control and both sides have a different understanding which means even after the new agreement is implemented there will still be conflicts and contradictions," Huang Yinghong, assistant professor of Asian and Pacific studies at Sun Yat-sen University, <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3483a758-3bb9-11e3-b85f-00144feab7de.html?siteedition=intl#axzz2j2aXlllb">told the Financial Times</a>.
<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image"><a title_source="Wikimedia Commons" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/526ece7369bedd2f038b456e-960/kashmir_map_big.jpg"></a>Wikimedia Commons</div></div>
China and India went to war in 1962 over disputed territory of Aksai Chin. India claimed this was a part of Kashmir, while China claimed it was a part of Xinjiang.
To the east, China and India also fought over the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. China calls the territory South Tibet.
It is widely believed that India's decision to grant the Dalai Lama asylum during the Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule also played a part in the war.
After the loss of Aksai Chin, Indian Prime Minister <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/letters/rewinding-to-1962/article4023482.ece">Jawaharlal Nehru said</a> "not a single blade of grass grows there."
But the disputes also extend to other parts.
"Currently, India and China dispute over a land area of about 125,000 km2 which can be divided into the eastern, middle and western sectors," <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=1&amp;ved=0CCsQFjAA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ispionline.it%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fpubblicazioni%2Fanalysis_181_2013.pdf&amp;ei=xa1uUqG9MfOr4APHi4CwBw&amp;usg=AFQjCNGXi5ibmPS6yrjvdX8wPby-2Avm_A&amp;bvm=bv.55123115,d.dmg">write Hongzhou Zhang and Mingjiang Li</a> of International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI).
We've already looked at the eastern sector (Arunachal Pradesh) and the western sector (Aksai Chin). There's also the middle sector:
"The middle sector starts from the tri-junction between the Southwestern of Ngari Prefecture, Tibet, La dwags and Punjab to the tri-junction between China, India and Nepal. Its border is about 450 km long, with about 2,000 km2 of land under dispute. The disputed area in the middle sector on the other hand is much smaller, involving only several pockets."
<div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right click-to-enlarge"><div class="image"><a title_source="Associated Press" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/526fc6b569bedd543a8e42f6-960/sino-indian-border-war.jpg"></a>Associated Press</div></div>
The death toll of the Sino-Indian war climbed to the thousands for India, and the hundreds for China. Thousands were wounded on both sides, and thousands of Indian soldiers disappeared. Many soldiers on both sides were believed to have died from the extremely harsh weather conditions.
China won that war. But Sino-Indian territorial disputes have continued since. Part of the problem is that a clear border has never been identified.
<h3>But India And China Have Good Reason To Cooperate</h3>
India is China's second-largest neighbor and the two are emerging market power houses. Yet, the EU, U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, and South Korea are bigger trading partners to China, than India, <a href="http://www.stats.gov.cn/english/newsandcomingevents/t20120222_402786587.htm">according to the National Bureau of Statistics</a>. Both India and China have pledged to <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3483a758-3bb9-11e3-b85f-00144feab7de.html?siteedition=intl#axzz2j2aXlllb">boost two-way trade to $100 billion by 2015.</a>
At a time when economic growth in both countries is beginning to slow, improving relations could help support both economies. In a speech delivered at the Central Party School, Indian Prime Minister <a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/resources/manmohan-singhs-speech-on-indiachina-relations-at-the-central-party-school-beijing/article5268097.ece">Manmohan Singh pointed to "eight specific areas" </a>where he sees opportunities for China and India to cooperate more. Here are the key talking points from his speech via The Hindu:
<ol>
<li>India needs to modernize its infrastructure and welcome Chinese investment there.</li>
<li>Efficiently managing the "process of mass urbanization" along with improved waste management. "China has significant experience of urbanization and our national planners, city administrators and entrepreneurs should share experiences and seek solutions in dealing with the physical, social, environmental and human challenges of mobility and urbanization."</li>
<li>India can learn from the strength of China's manufacturing sector, while China can learn from India's strength in services.</li>
<li>"Intensify cooperation on the shared challenges of energy security, including joint development of renewable energy resources."</li>
<li>Work together on food security.</li>
<li>Collaborate to make " the international economic environment more conducive to our development efforts."</li>
<li>Focus more attention on sustainable growth and cooperate to ensure that "the international response to climate change does not constrain our growth and that it continues to be based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities." </li>
<li>Work together to ensure security in the region.</li>
</ol>
Tied closely to Singh's final point, better ties between the two Asian giants "opens up the possibility that Beijing might use its leverage with Islamabad to shape Pakistan's behavior in a way that might benefit India," writes <a href="http://www.brookings.edu/research/opinions/2013/10/08-india-china-relations-madan">Tanvi Madan of Brookings Institute. </a>
"For Beijing, there's desire to limit India's burgeoning relationships with the United States and Japan, as well as with other countries in what Beijing considers its backyard."
While the latest Sino-Indian border pact is not likely to yield an outright political alliance, better political and cultural ties can only help bolster both economies.

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