Abstract
The Yaluzangbu-Brahmaputra River is a hotspot for the discussions on regional security. The interactions on water between China and India are key to realizing water-related 2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets in the basin. Using a series of secondary literature information, and the method of event studies, we created a timeline of the Sino-Indian relation events since the 1950s, analyzed the correlations among the contents, the duties by each side, the events of water cooperation, and the diplomatic events between them. We found the following dilemmas hamper water cooperation: (1) The scopes of, and steps towards, transboundary water cooperation are hampered by patchy Sino-Indian diplomatic relations; and (2) there is a lack of motivation for China to cooperate with India without benefits sharing, given that China has undertaken more duties and has often received negative feedback. However, we also found the following pathways toward improving water cooperation: (1) A national cooperation mechanism on transboundary rivers has been established, which may be beneficial for further water cooperation; and (2) a channel for interdisciplinary dialogue should be encouraged to bridge the disparate outlooks and improve interactions between policymakers and scientific experts.
Highlights
The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) river is one of the world’s richest basins with freshwater, and one of the future risk hotspots for transboundary water disputes [1,2,3,4]
The intensity of, water cooperation between China and India over the Brahmaputra River Basin (BRB), we look at the evolution of cooperation since 1950s from hydropolitics and multi-track water diplomacy [14,15,16,17,18]
From the processes and challenges of water cooperation between China and India in the BR, since 1950s, we identify that transboundary water cooperation plays an assisting role in Sino-Indian diplomacy, due to a long-term mistrust and territory dispute, China and India are unlikely to reach full implantation of integrated water resources management (IWRM) of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in the BR
Summary
The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) river is one of the world’s richest basins with freshwater, and one of the future risk hotspots for transboundary water disputes [1,2,3,4]. The Brahmaputra River (BR) is the largest in the GBM system by annual runoff, and originates in China (where it is known as the Yaluzangbu, or the Tsangpo, or the Yarlung Zangbu), obtains five tributaries from Bhutan, flows through India (as the Brahmaputra) and Bangladesh (as the Jamuna), and empties into the. The projects on water development (including the planning ones) both, in China and India, are concerned about a future water crisis, which have more or less affected the Sino-Indian relations [5,10,11,12,13].
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