Stabilizing China-India relations

Recently, positive exchanges between China and India have fostered the improvement of bilateral relations. Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is visiting China from July 14 to 15, marking his first visit to the country after the May 2020 Galwan Clashes.

The former Indian national security adviser Shri Shivshankar Menon (Menon), speaking to reporters on the side-lines of the World Peace Forum held by Tsinghua University earlier this month, emphasized the importance of communication and fostering peace and development between China and India.

Assessing the situation as a Former National Security Advisor, he said that both Countries were moving toward a more normal relationship – toward normalization. His expectation was to see a faster progress as both sides acknowledged that more needs to be done.

Though as per him it was more important that things should head in the right direction with positive engagement.

Menon saw hope on both sides as ultimately, both India and China need a peaceful environment to focus on better and essential things.

There are many areas where the two can cooperate economically. There is real complementarity between India and China. But beyond economics, there’s also potential for cooperation in many other fields. There is broad space to work together.

Shri Menon has always been emphasizing the importance of building predictability in China-India relations and maintaining dialogue in the face of differences. This predictability starts with the LAC and the Indo Tibetan border.

For this there has to be more communication with each other and more the better. One of the problems in 2020 Galwan Clashes was the lack of communication. Both sides were caught off guard, and as a result, the situation escalated. That experience shows why greater communication is so important – it introduces predictability into the relationship.

If both sides agree on certain steps to take when unexpected situations arise – including confidence-building measures and crisis management mechanisms – then both can create a framework for predictability.

That way, even if something does happen, each side knows how to respond and what to expect from the other. That’s crucial. This requires a level of transparency and consistent communication, as well as agreed procedures that both sides trust. This logic also applies to the political relationship more broadly.

India and China won’t agree on everything – as both are different countries with different systems – but mutual understanding reduces discomfort and miscalculation.

Both great civilizations share a periphery, with their well-being linked: A better-off India is good for China, and a better-off China is good for India. Naturally, as two large neighbours, they may rub up against each other from time to time. But that makes it all the more important to talk through mutual differences and manage them constructively.

There are many domains where both share common interests. For example, both China and India benefit from an open international trading system. Therefore, both have a strong stake in preserving that openness. There’s a wide range of areas where they can cooperate.
As per Shri Menon, the economic complementarity between China and India is particularly significant – it’s a solid foundation to build the relationship on. Finally, there is a need to address the perceptions in both countries. That’s something that deserves serious attention. Improving mutual perceptions is key to building long-term trust.

In recent years, some countries have viewed India as a “strategic counter” to China and a narrative has been built up on this perception. However Shri Menon does not see it that way at all – and that’s certainly not how Indians see it.
Others are free to say what they want, but India and China have their own priorities. Primary interest of Indian leadership is to transform India – to develop the country and improve the lives of the people. That’s the real responsibility – not to counter anyone.

The leadership’s focus is on creating an enabling environment for India’s transformation. That means ensuring peace in our periphery and working constructively with our neighbors. China is our largest neighbor, so of course we work with China – just as we work with others. The US and China are both among our biggest trading partners, and we engage with both.

This idea of India as a “counterweight” is what Shri Menon calls “pop geopolitics”. All the talk of balancing and countering may sound dramatic, but that’s not how the world really works.

The China-US relationship is their own to manage. India is not going to be forced into choosing between them – and will not choose. India has been non-aligned since 1947, what did that mean? It meant India would not align with one bloc against another. That principle hasn’t changed.

India follows her own interests on each issue. Sometimes that may mean working with one country, sometimes with another. That’s precisely why it is termed as strategic autonomy – because decisions are based on India’s national interest, case by case.

India has always pursued an independent path. She didn’t fight for freedom only to become someone else’s pawn. Of course, people will say things – that’s to be expected. They will try to create certain impressions. But India is not obliged to accept those narratives or be boxed in by them.

This year’s World Peace Forum was themed “Advancing Global Peace and Prosperity: Shared Responsibility, Benefit, and Achievement.

Commenting on the above Vision, Shri Menon said that this vision is especially important for the Global South, because both elements of the theme – peace and prosperity – are crucial. Peace is essential in order to improve and transform the societies. In fact, more than anyone else, the Global South needs peace.

Unfortunately, today’s world has become much more complicated. It is fragmented – in fact, it is essentially an order less world. This reality makes it all the more important for everyone in the Global South to consider what we can be done – to achieve peace, development, and prosperity.

The first step is to focus on own development – to take care of own people. That in itself is a major contribution to global peace and prosperity, because both India and Chine represent a significant 35 % of entire humanity.

When Southeast and Northeast Asia too are included along with China and India, then it makes up about roughly 4 billion people – nearly half the global population. So, if India and China can manage their affairs and maintain peace in the region, it makes total difference globally.