On his maiden visit to Beijing, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping during which the two leaders agreed to strengthen the all-weather friendship and the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
It will be interesting to see whether India-China border tensions figure during the deliberations of PLA deputies to the NPC and CPPCC, notes Jayadeva Ranade, the distinguished China expert and retired RA&W officer.
'Vijay Gokhale's appointment as foreign secretary can be regarded as a certain 'adjustment' that could make a difference to the poor climate of India-China relations,' says Ambassdor M K Bhadrakumar.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is all set for an unprecedented third five-year term as he was 'elected' to the powerful Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party on Saturday while several top leaders including Premier Li Keqiang have been left out in the major shake-up at the top.
'We must acknowledge China will use Pakistan against India.' 'We all need to know that these two countries are ready to destabilise India at all times.'
'Unlike the Chinese army that has been largely a peace time force, the Indian Army is a battle hardened force,' explains Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Mike Pompeo has said that among the dozens of world leaders he met as the United States Secretary of State he found the 'most unpleasant' was Chinese President Xi Jinping, who threatened to stop sending PPE kits to America if it kept asking for accountability from Beijing on COVID-19.
Two of Xi Jinping's chosen officials have disappeared from view, an indication of turmoil in Xi's government, months after he installed a collection of loyalist leaders in his cabinet, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
The "opaque" electoral bonds scheme for funding political parties will "destroy democracy" as it promotes corruption and does not allow a level playing field between the ruling and opposition parties, the petitioners challenging the validity of the scheme told the Supreme Court, which on Tuesday observed election funding was a "complicated issue".
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who is at the helm of managing the country's economy for a decade, said that he will be stepping down this year, setting in motion the once-in-a-decade sweeping leadership change in the Communist country.
Winter Olympics will be staged by a country that has grown far wealthier, more powerful
'If you behave like a nail, the adversary will behave like a hammer.'
'Doklam was almost like a trailer to what is happening in Ladakh today.' 'Modi failed to take note and failed to act,' observes Harishchandra Dighe.
We do not know, because there has been no discussion, no transparency and most likely no real thinking on this matter at our end, observes Aakar Patel.
Will China's new military reforms endanger Xi Jinping's rule?
'To summarise, PM Modi's failures in the last nine years can be categorised under 'durniti' (bad policies), 'anyay' (injustice) and - perhaps most importantly - 'badniyat' (ill intention)'
'COVID-19 will not stop the expansion of China's 'infrastructure power'.'
'The military officers at China's National People's Congress reflect Xi Jinping's preference for elevating politically reliable, younger, officers with good professional qualifications,' says former RAW officer and China expert Jayadeva Ranade.
'Why did your generals try to grab a few square kilometres of Indian territory in Ladakh?' 'And what happened to the hard work that you and Prime Minister Modi put into the Wuhan and Mamallapuram meets?' Claude Arpi writes a letter to Xi Jinping, China's self-styled supreme leader, who turns 68 today, June 15.
'The boundary dispute notwithstanding, China has always had leaders who have been, on the whole, positively disposed towards India.' 'Given the centrality of the Chinese Communist Party, we need to strengthen the linkages with the crucial personalities in the highest echelons of the Communist party and political leadership,' notes China expert Alka Acharya.
Sino-Indian strategic relations are expected to get further fillip during the second innings of Chinese Communist Party chief Hu Jintao, who is all set to offer a red carpet welcome to Congress president Sonia Gandhi in Beijing this week.
China's former security czar Zhou Yongkang was on Friday charged with bribery, abuse of power and intentional disclosure of state secrets, making him the senior-most official to face trial in recent decades.
Justice Tushar Rao Gedela also asked the police to file replies to their applications seeking interim release till the pendency of the petitions.
'Intrusions by PLA troops in the Ladakh sector are more in number than elsewhere and this region is now likely to remain an area of enhanced Chinese interest,' warns China expert Jayadeva Ranade.
The president said China would never allow "any people, organisation or political party to split any part of Chinese territory out of the country at any time, in any form."
Xi, the most powerful leader in recent decades heading the ruling Communist Party and the military, will now be the first Chinese leader after the founder chairman Mao Zedong to remain in power lifelong.
Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran was to attend the United Nations World Tourism Organisation meet in Chengdu between September 11-16.
'There is little doubt that China today stands in the dock, charged with misdemeanour with regard to the health and well-being of its own citizens and of the people of the world,' notes Amulya Ganguli.
Four Chinese soldiers were killed in the fierce clash with the Indian Army in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh in June last year, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) acknowledged for the first time on Friday.
The talks took place in a beach resort in Benaulim on the sidelines of a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
The Chinese leader will display his grip on the Communist party and chart his plans for his country's future.
'Xi's assumption of absolute power is neither complete, nor irreversible.' 'Nor is it safe, for Xi, for his party, or for his country more generally.' 'And the government knows this,' says Mihir S Sharma.
Observers say China should re-address its policies towards India or else it will continue to face flare-ups increasing the tensions between the two countries at a time China's increasing tension with the US over Taiwan and the South China Sea besides the downturn in the Chinese economy which is hit hard by the zero-covid policy.
Chinese President Xi Jinping told FIFA boss Gianni Infantino he hoped the Asian nation could host a World Cup "in the future", the world soccer governing body said on Wednesday, after the two met in Beijing.
A visit to Tibet appears to have become the new touchstone for expressing fealty to Xi Jinping, observes Jayadeva Ranade, the retired senior RA&W officer and distinguished China expert.
The challenge for India and China is to achieve a new web of strategic relationships without weakening the present momentum towards better bilateral relations, says B Raman
Prime Minister Modi made a strategic blunder of Nehruvian proportions -- presuming no war can happen now, and the Chinese won't be a military threat and risk their economic interests, observes Shekhar Gupta.
If the prime minister can say all kinds of things against India, why is it a crime if Rahul Gandhi does so, Kharge said.
It is premature to make the assumption that Biden's policy toward China will not be a break with Trump, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The military preparations underway show that the PLA may undertake operations this summer to achieve whatever objectives they could not achieve last May, asserts Jayadeva Ranade, the distinguished China expert and retired RA&W officer.
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