China's deteriorating economy is a serious concern. Xi Jinping and China's new premier will have a difficult task ahead of them after the 20th party congress, notes Jayadeva Ranade, the retired senior RA&W officer and China expert.
China has not limited the 'battle' to the diplomatic field alone; the People's Liberation Army has become aggressive on the ground too. The recent 'fights' in Northern Sikkim and Ladakh are part of the pattern, asserts Claude Arpi.
Cancelling Uighur leader Dolkun Isa's visa could have been a mutual face-saving exercise for New Delhi and Beijing.
Along with Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju, Pema Khandu undertook a 107-km all-terrain vehicle ride from PTSO Lake to Mago village in Tawang district along the Indo-China border.
General Zhao Zongqi is well known in India for having commanded the Chinese troops during the Dokalam episode. Zhao knows every inch and corner of the Indian border, at least the Eastern and Central sectors, including the Naku La area which witnessed fist-fights between Indian and Chinese troops in April/May. Claude Arpi introduces us to the PLA generals masterminding the Chinese aggression in Ladakh.
The ambassador has emphasised that no misunderstandings must crop up between India, China.
Beijing is clearly rattled by the Dalai Lama's visit. Unlike the 2009 visit, which was a four-day religious tour, the current visit is a high-decibel, 10-day affair, without the fig leaf of a "religious event", reports Ajai Shukla.
Xi will attend the second informal meeting with Modi at Mahabalipuram near Chennai from October 11 to 12 and pay a state visit to Nepal on October 13, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying announced on Wednesday.
Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma and the Bharatiya Janata Party National General Secretary Ram Madhav on Saturday attended the 'Thank You India' event in Dharamshala, organised to mark 60 years of The Dalai Lama's exile.
The Chinese and the Indian troops were engaged in a standoff for 73 days in Doklam.
'We will continue to brief the Indian side on the latest development in a timely manner,' a Chinese official said with reference to the artificial lake in Tibet.
"After the tri-junction in Doklam in the Sikkim sector, this is the most important tri-junction along the Sino-India border."
China launched a fresh broadside against Dalai Lama, accusing him of perpetuating feudalism and warned that any attempts to separate Tibet from the country are doomed to fail, on Saturday.
This is the first time Pakistan and Kashmir have been brought into the narrative.
The new PM would be more than unwise to attempt steering away from India into an all-encompassing Chinese embrace that would ultimately swamp Bhutanese identity, says Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
'All the government needs to do is to identify clear political and strategic objectives and to give the military planners a free hand,' asserts Ajai Shukla.
The Chinese media has accused India of using the Dalai Lama card to deal with China's growing economic and political influence in South Asia and warned New Delhi of "severe consequences" if it hosted the Tibetan spiritual leader in a "disputed" area in Arunachal Pradesh.
China reiterated that no meaningful dialogue can be held with India until it "unconditionally" withdraws troops from the disputed Doklam area and said Foreign Minister Wang Yi has authoritatively made Beijing's position clear on the issue.
The Dalai Lama during an interview to prominent comedian John Oliver said that Chinese hardliners have parts of their brains missing.
India on Sunday opened a third hotline in view of 'large number' of phone calls from the Indians who are mostly students, the Indian Embassy in Beijing said.
'India's military posture has become significantly stronger than China's on the 3,500-kilometre Line of Actual Control.' 'This is enhancing confrontation between the two sides,' points out Ajai Shukla.
The Chinese fighter aircraft activities took place from its bases including the Hotan, Gar Gunsa and Kashgar airfields which have been upgraded recently to enable operations by all types of fighters along with concrete structures to hide away the presence of the number of fighters present at its different airbases, the sources said.
Did Xi deliver a message to Modi at Mamallapuram, which though couched in a velvet glove was time-bound? What was that message? It is clear Indian/Israeli/US spy satellites would not have missed detecting Chinese troop movements towards the Ladakh-Tibet frontier. Then why did some important functionaries in the Government of India choose to only ask the Russians about this in April 2020? Was Russian reassurance of Chinese troop movements being part of a routine exercise the reason that the Leh-based XIV Corps did not mobilise itself for its annual summer exercises near the LAC? A fascinating excerpt from Iqbal Chand Malhotra's new book Red Fear: The China Threat.
Even senior Indian officials have openly stated that Chinese troops did not enter into the Indian territory, Wang said.
'If Islamic extremists regain power in Afghanistan, Pakistan will lead them to Kashmir as a fighting arena again. India needs to fortify Kashmir and prepare against these Islamic extremists before they come again.'
The field commanders have also been told that while patrolling their respective areas of responsibility or accomplishing any task, there should not be any extra display of strength or overuse of force, government sources told ANI.
"So far Tibet is concerned, our position has all along been that the issue has to be resolved between different sections of the people of Tibet and People's Republic of China through dialogue and not through force," he said during an interaction with journalists at an orientation programme on Parliamentary reporting.
'The Himmatsinghji Report is still 'missing'.' 'It is a great loss for the knowledge of India's borders.' 'It would have an immense value at a time China is bound to shift its attention to other border fronts in the Himalayas,' notes Claude Arpi.
'The Chinese have been moving in step by step; inch by inch for the last 40 years.'
China on Friday cautioned foreign countries against hosting the Dalai Lama and interfering in its domestic affairs on the vexed Tibet issue, a day after United States President Barack Obama and the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader appeared together in public for the first time.
'How can a State, which claims to be a responsible power, unilaterally grab a "disputed" area to build a road on it?' asks Claude Arpi.
Pithorgarh administration said on Thursday that Indian traders can soon start trade with China through Lipu-Lekh pass.\n\n\n\n
China said the US delegation's visit to Dharamshala and their meeting with the Dalai Lama has "sent a very wrong signal to the outside world about supporting Tibetan independence and violated the US government's commitment not to support Tibet's independence."
Chief of defence staff Bipin Rawat on Thursday said the controversy about the Chinese coming into the Indian territory and building a new village is 'not true,' and that the villages were well within the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control.
China's ruling Communist Party has cracked down on Tibetans who planned to attend the Kalachakra Puja in Bodh Gaya. But the Tibetan people have dared the Communists by listening to the Dalai Lama's sermons on the Internet and sharing videos on social media.
Army chief General Naravane said the ongoing dialogue will sort out all the perceived differences between the two countries.
Dressed in his Assam Rifles uniform, 76-year-old Das, said that he escorted the Dalai Lama as his armed guard in 1959.
He termed the situation with China as 'very dangerous' and said India under Modi does not have any clear cut strategy on China, which is testing the country and will not sit silent.
China warned US against Obama's public appearance with Dalai Lama.
