'Our record and our actions and stances is fairly clear and by criticising it repeatedly, it doesn't make us less credible'
In a major policy speech on Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the world will not allow China to treat the strategically important South China Sea (SCS) as its 'maritime empire' and vowed to support worried Southeast Asian countries against Beijing's 'campaign of bullying' to control the resource-rich region.
A state-run Chinese newspaper on Wednesdy included India among the nations which supported China's stand on the strategic South China Sea after Beijing rejected the verdict of a United Nations-backed tribunal that struck down the Communist giant's claims of "historical rights" in the disputed area.
'It is not possible for New Delhi to take sides between Beijing and Washington.'
India and Japan on Thursday agreed to enhance military exercises and defence cooperation as the two countries emphasised that the bilateral special strategic and global partnership plays a crucial role in ensuring a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific, amidst China's aggressive behaviour in the region.
It is the country's second aircraft carrier, after the Liaoning, and the first to be made domestically.
'China would want to take a tougher stance against India forming those strategic partnerships and prevent Quad from becoming a military alliance.'
After the 1962 War with China, there was a demand to forge greater defence cooperation between India and the West. One such voice was that of Sudhir Ghosh, a distinguished MP, to tie up strategic cooperation with the USA immediately after the Chinese attack on India, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
The US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" is bound to be a failed strategy, Wang said in the comments posted by the Chinese foreign ministry on its website.
The United States will continue to support India with equipment and other things it needs along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, a top American admiral has told lawmakers, asserting that Washington and New Delhi share a 'tremendous partnership'.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made a clear break with the past on UK-China relations as he declared that the "so-called golden era" of bilateral ties is over in the face of the "systemic challenge" posed by the Chinese regime to British values and interests.
China has said that it successfully carried out a land-based mid-course anti-ballistic missile (ABM) technical test on Sunday with Chinese experts claiming that the tests, stated to be the sixth of its kind, validated the reliability of the country's anti-ballistic missile umbrella.
The Iran-Israel conflict has further increased global economic uncertainties, impacting world trade, including India's exports, as it is expected to drive up both air and sea freight rates, exporters say. They said that India's exports to Europe and counters like Russia may get impacted due to this war.
No such decision has been taken either in the Indian Ocean or South China Sea.
India is increasingly a willing participant in the evolving US' Indo-Pacific strategy. While these developments are related to the perception of a growing Chinese security challenge, their implications for India's much-vaunted strategic autonomy should be a matter of deeper and closer reflection, asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
It is the first-ever visit by a head of the Indian Army to South Korea.
The President-elect has already infuriated China by talking over phone with the Taiwanese President, the first by a top American leader since 1979.
Richard Verma, the highest-ranking Indian-American official in the State Department, has expressed optimism about the future of US-India ties and emphasized the need to base the relationship on shared values rather than mere transactional dealings. Verma, who previously served as America's Ambassador to India, stressed the importance of the Quad in defending the international order, highlighting its shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Projecting the mining operations as part of China's move to take over Arunachal Pradesh, the report said 'people familiar with the project say the mines are part of an ambitious plan by Beijing to reclaim South Tibet'.
India should encourage the second coming of SAARC with climate change as an urgent agenda and keeping Indian security concerns in mind as the subtext, suggest Lieutenant General Ashok Joshi (retd) and Colonel Anil Athale (retd).
'While China expressed reservations on the Indian role in the South China Sea, Beijing threw to the winds Indian concerns on Kashmir by announcing $46 billion in investments Pakistan occupied Kashmir,' says Srikanth Kondapalli.
US Vice President Kamala Harris would host a separate meeting with the prime ministers of three Quad countries -- India, Australia and Japan -- at the White House to discuss with them the important factors for democracies to go forward, officials said.
Reports (not denied by India) that the USA had 'for the first time provided real-time details to their Indian counterparts on the Chinese positions and force strength in advance of a PLA incursion' into Tawang at the LAC in December 2022, helping India thwart China's expansionist designs, show how operationally effective the USA-India friendship has become on the ground. A engaging excerpt from Sreeram Chaulia's must-read new book, Friends: India's Closest Strategic Partners.
Foreign ministry spokesman said no change in China's position in case of non-NPT countries.
The 50,000-metric tonne vessel will focus on what a genuine aircraft carrier is supposed to do like conducting combat-ready patrols and safeguarding China's maritime sovereignty and interests, the report said.
President Biden has been forced to turn his attention to domestic politics, as he works to hash out a deal with Republicans to prevent the US from defaulting on its debts at the end of this month.
A hike in China's defence budget has got defence experts and analysts debating the country's rising military power and clout.
The statement of Commander of US Indo-Pacific Command Admiral John Aquilino on Wednesday came ahead of the 15th round of high-level military talks between India and China on March 11.
When the technology gap between China and India will remain large, cost-effective hardware of the kind that proved their worth in Operation Sindoor should be our priority, points out R Jagannathan.
'Trump's aggressive stance towards China and preference for military posturing could shift the Quad's balance towards overt militarisation.'
China will prioritise the development of a floating nuclear power platform in the coming five years.
Chinese observers forecast that whether it is Trump or Biden, they are expected to follow tough and hardline policies towards Beijing as part of US efforts to contain the rise of China.
The Quad has come of age and its agenda covering areas like vaccines, climate change and emerging technologies makes it a force for global good, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the first summit of the coalition. In his opening remarks, he also talked about shared values and promoting a secure, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific.
'With the recent challenging of the notion of the Indian Ocean Region being India's strategic backyard, China is gradually upping the ante in the maritime realm around India.'
He claimed China has a policy of keeping "hot spots like Taiwan, South China Sea and Tawang burning" in order to divert attention to its own failings.
Terming China as "number-one abuser", leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has alleged that the Communist nation, along with India, is taking advantage of the US through its economic policies.
China and Vietnam have an acrimonious relationship due to their standoff over the South China Sea, a huge source of hydrocarbons.
Chinese state TV reported USS George Washington would pass through the "Huangyan islands", also claimed by the Philippines as Scarborough Shoal, while analysts expressed concern over the US nuclear powered super carrier passing through "Chinese waters".
The US House of Representatives and the Senate on Tuesday passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which included key components of Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi's resolution language urging the Chinese government to end its military aggression against India along the LAC.
The India-Japan joint naval exercises are a strategic signal for China, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
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