Sub-regional Cooperation between China and India-An Analysis through the Prism of the BCIM Forum

Abstract

China and India have emerged as powerful growth engines of the world in the twenty-first century, whose durability has been testified by the successful weathering of the Global Financial Crisis since 2008. The main marker has been the presence of a growing middle-class which has generated domestic demand and, thereby, spurred economic growth. Bilateral trade has grown phenomenally in the past one decade, as has cooperation in other areas. Despite problems, they have been trying hard to promote a congenial atmosphere to carry on with their objectives of nation-building through sustainable development. One of their most pressing concerns has been the integration of their far-off peripheral regions politically, economically, culturally and socially with their mainstreams. They have realised that these backward regions, namely Southwest China and Northeast India, share historical ties with not only each other, but also the entire landmass stretching out to Southeast Asia. One of the multilateral initiatives that they have joined to further their stated aims for this sub-region is the Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) Regional Cooperation Forum. This paper aims to discuss the prospects for sub-regional cooperation between China and India to develop their frontier areas under the auspices of the BCIM Forum.