India in China's Foreign Policy

Abstract

At a press conference during the BRICS summit held in Sanya, China in April 2011, convening leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson had the following to say about China's foreign policy towards India: recent years, China-India relations have achieved sound with frequent high-level exchanges and practical cooperation across the board. We have maintained close contact and communication on major international and issues'. To one's surprise, the words issues were conspicuously absent. The leaders of the two countries have met each other more than 20 times in the last five years, (1) with the latest occasion being the meeting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the April 2011 BRICS summit in Sanya. (2) Despite the various changes that had taken place in the international system in the last decade, bilateral relations between the two countries have not graduated beyond atmospherics. (3) This article argues how China redefines its relationship with India is an important factor which will shape China's foreign policy in the years ahead. Adopting a refreshing approach to India and working out a measured foreign policy towards its south-western neighbour calls for a long-term vision (yuanjing) on the part of Chinese foreign policymakers. Policymakers should try to maximise the payoffs from the bilateral relations between the two countries by keeping in view the shadow of the That is, payoffs are bound to increase over time and therefore one can make a case for heightened bilateral cooperation for a better future. In many ways, China is at a crossroads in its foreign relations. In fact, there is a growing feeling that as China looks around, it realises that it just does not have many friends. (4) Most of China's diplomatic efforts are invested in convincing ever suspicious neighbours and other major stakeholders in the international system that its growing in the international arena is based on peaceful development and it has no intention of becoming another superpower in the making. Unfortunately for the Chinese, many countries in the world are very uncertain of what a rising China will do. (5) Therefore, the neighbouring countries are preoccupied with questions such as: what will China be like as it becomes militarily and economically stronger? Is it going to be an innocent giant or is it a patient hegemon biding time to assert itself? Is it going to be a weak power, a normal power or a regional power? (6) The post-financial crisis international system has only exacerbated such concerns, and the Chinese leadership faces the challenge of having a relook at its foreign policy. Should it continue to adhere to the famous 28-Chinese character guidelines established by Deng Xiaoping in the wake of the developments that took place after the Tiananmen incident? (7) Or should it finally abandon its discretion and announce its arrival on the world stage and pursue an aggressive, revisionist agenda? In facing such challenges in its foreign policymaking, China must re-examine its stance on many issues. One such crucial issue is how China deals with India, another emerging which nurses ambitions of playing an instrumental role in shaping the world in the 21st century. This article is divided into three sections. The first deals with the question of why India should be taken seriously by the Chinese foreign policymakers in order to promote China's own national interests. Four possible reasons are addressed, namely: (i) the growing economic prowess of India; (ii) India's increasingly confident and assertive conduct in its foreign policy; (iii) questioning the premise that economic and commercial ties are sufficient and sound indicators for boosting bilateral ties; and very briefly on (iv) coping with the divide and rule policy of the West. …