Bilateral relations between India and China are of great importance in the history and future of world politics. This article reviews the important role played by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in this regard.
 |
| Image by: https://unsplash.com/photos/aku7Zlj_x_o |
If we look at the history of long standing relations between India and China, we can see that the bilateral relations between the two countries have gone through many important stages. These phases appear to have been scattered throughout the years 1954, 1962, 1975, 1989, 1998 and 2003. A review of this history reveals the significant work done by the late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in this regard. The reasons behind the importance of Vajpayee's legacy of bilateral relations for both India and China are two-tiered. One of the important milestones in the bilateral relations between the two countries was the formation of Vajpayee during his political career. And the second reason is that the equations in the bilateral relations between the two countries at that time have not changed much since then. The emphasis then was on strengthening the relationship,
Just as Vajpayee's visit to China in 1979 is well-known, so too is the question he raises in Parliament from the opposition or the scholarly speech. Similarly, during Vajpayee's tenure (1998-2004), there were five distinct and distinctive factors that contributed to the strengthening of India-China relations, which need to be examined separately.
Generally, Vajpayee's career is known for many crises and the face given to him by his government. However, in the case of China, the Vajpayee era marked the beginning of a long-term stable relationship between India and China, and the bilateral relations established thereby gained strategic importance from a strategic point of view.
The first and perhaps most important milestone was India's nuclear tests in 1998. Following the nuclear tests, the Vajpayee government wrote a logical letter to the then US President in support of the nuclear tests, mentioning the nuclear-armed neighbors. The letter was allegedly leaked to the media by an insider in the White House. However, the issue became important in the process of improving relations with China as India imposed itself on the non-use of nuclear weapons in the face of uncertainties / instability. While the uncertainty surrounding China's assumption persists, India's subsequent nuclear tests by Pakistan have proved to be China's covert support, underscoring the threat posed by China to India. However, at that time, India was not very much threatened by China.
Another noteworthy factor is the neutral stance taken by China after the Kargil war! This role of China came as a shock to Pakistan. This role was the exact opposite of their assumptions. Against this backdrop, it is only natural to recall the hasty visit of the then Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Sartaj Aziz, to China during the Kargil war. However, China has advised Aziz to maintain its non-interference in the Kargil war and to allow Pakistan to prioritize peace without escalating the conflict. One of the strongest reasons behind China's restrained stance is the fact that Indian troops did not cross the Line of Control (LoC) during the Kargil war, and in strict compliance with international law. The credit for all this, of course, goes to the then Prime Minister.
The Kargil Review Committee discussed what exactly went wrong in Kargil and how to avoid repeating those mistakes in the future. As a result, the post of National Security Adviser was created. This led to a non-political forum for continuous discussion between the two neighboring nations. While some of the suggested theoretical changes are still on paper, the creation of the Andaman and Nicobar Command has soured relations between India and China. Issues such as the development of roads near the border and the establishment of meteorological warning systems also began to appear in both countries after 2004-05.
In the post-nuclear period, another factor contributing to the improvement or revival of relations between the two countries was India's support for China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). China was struggling to gain access to the organization but was blocked for various reasons, which India saw as a developing country. India also sees this as an opportunity to boost bilateral trade, with bilateral trade between the two countries reaching 2 billion in 2000 to. 84.4 billion in 2017. While there are other well-known issues between the two countries, this trade growth opportunity was seen as a credible step towards building trust between the two countries.
Vajpayee's pragmatic realism was the reason for declaring India and the US as natural friends, as he had a clear idea of the friendly relations with the US and the subsequent scandals that followed, but only to convey the message to India that It also proved that India's foreign policy framework is changing and will no longer be framed solely on the basis of mutual interests. At the time, China was on the verge of emerging as a powerful nation on the world stage, and that was why Hora was expected to look at India's new role from China. This can be seen in the interpretation of the following events.
Perhaps that is why Vajpayee's visit to China in 2003 became important in this context. The declaration, based on the principles of inclusive cooperation and relations, was signed by the leaders of the two countries. The agreement was seen as a peace agreement between the two countries without any fuss. This triggered a special delegation-level discussion between the two countries. This included border disputes. The delegates were discussing how to find a peaceful solution to the border dispute by staying away from any light. From a long-term perspective, this is exactly what is happening. The 20 meetings held at this level so far have sealed the seriousness of both the countries in this regard.
In his autobiography, Dai Bingwo, a member of the Chinese parliament and the first and longest-serving special envoy, also mentioned in his autobiography that Vajpayee hoped that the special envoy's talks would be fruitful in five years. This proves the pragmatism of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Whether Vajpayee can pass on his legacy to his right-hand men is a different matter.
You can choose your friends but not your neighbors. Vajpayee's simple but powerful statement proves how and in what manner he tried to establish cordial relations with Pakistan during his time. Although their history of relations with neighboring countries has not been very exciting due to their pragmatism, a new path has been created in the relations. This is the motto of Vajpayee's policy and it is still relevant today. It is on this basis that the last 15 years of Indo-China relations have come to a head.
Post a Comment