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OpEdNews Op Eds    H3'ed 9/12/22

Limited troop disengagement on China-India border seen positive signal in easing border tension

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Abdus-Sattar Ghazali
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Amid China and India's joint efforts to promote the cooling of border tension since the outbreak of the 2020 Galwan Valley border clash, Thursday witnessed a positive development, the Global Times reported. The Chinese and Indian troops in the area of Jianan Daban in Ladakh have begun to disengage in a coordinated and planned way, according to the consensus reached in the 16th Round of China-India Corps Commander Level Meeting held in July, China's Ministry of National Defense said in a statement on Friday.

Before this meeting, little breakthroughs on disengagement were made in the previous few rounds of corps commander level talks, the Global Times pointed out. Last time, the major process was made in February 2021, when Chinese and Indian frontline troops at the south and north bank of the Pangong Tso Lake began a synchronized and organized disengagement, based on the consensus reached in the ninth round of the China-India Corps Commander Level Meeting in January. The latest disengagement is a step forward.

The disengagement of the front-line troops in Jianan Daban shows that the Chinese side has created conditions for further improvement of China-India ties while safeguarding territorial sovereignty. It is a positive trend that mirrors the easing tensions over the border areas since the Galwan Valley conflict, Lin Minwang, a professor at the Institute of International Studies of Fudan University, told the Global Times.

While affirming the disengagement is positive progress, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning stressed Friday that China does not accept the so-called status quo on the China-India border caused by illegal crossing by Indian side over the Line of Actual Control, but this does not mean that China does not attach importance to the peace and tranquility of the China-India border area.

However Indian media reported Friday that other contentious issues related to the boundary still remain between the two countries and Chinese forces continue to block Indian access to traditional patrolling areas along the LAC in the Depsang Plains and Charding Nala region.

The Indian Express reported Friday that if the disengagement processes are completed smoothly and successfully, the stage will be set for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's travel to Samarkand for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit on September 15 and 16, which will be attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping. A meeting between Modi and Xi has not yet been confirmed, but is not being ruled out either. A Modi-Putin meeting is almost confirmed, paper said.

There have been some other positive signals and interactions between China and India recently, according to the Global Times. For example, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said in August that an "Asian century" would not happen unless India and China join hands. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin responded to the statement by saying China and India "have far more common interests than differences. Both sides have the wisdom and capability to help each other succeed instead of undercutting each other."

When it comes to China-India ties, the US is the elephant in the room, the Global Times said adding: The US has always wanted India to help Washington contain China, exhaust China's strategic resources. On the other hand, it is undeniable that India has gone far in playing the US card regarding its China policy over the past few years. "But India has its own pursuit of national interests, a long-term tradition in strategic autonomy. It will not behave like an US ally or become a pushover when its own interests are hurt," according to Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University.

It is hoped India will gradually balance its policy between China and the US, just like how it has balanced its stance between Russian and the US. India tends to believe that as long as border disputes are not settled, there is no room for cooperation in other fields, Zhao Gancheng, a research fellow at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, told the Global Times.

But China believes the opposite. The bilateral relationship is a big picture which requires broad vision. Even if border disputes are not fully addressed, the two countries can still find common interests elsewhere. For instance, China-India economic trade ties are dented due to the shadows of border tensions in recent years, but cooperation between the two in this field has great potential.

And on whether China-India border can maintain long term peace and tranquility, the key lies in India, lies in whether India will keep viewing border issues as leverage against China, and provoking China's determination and will to safeguard its territory and sovereignty, according to Lin Minwang, a professor at the Institute of International Studies of Fudan University.

The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas. Both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry. Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the sensitive sector.

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Author and journalist. Author of Islamic Pakistan: Illusions & Reality; Islam in the Post-Cold War Era; Islam & Modernism; Islam & Muslims in the Post-9/11 America. American Muslims in Politics. Islam in the 21st Century: (more...)
 

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