Neutering & Defanging Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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X-Post from STFU-TSP thread

Pakistan-sponsored Terrorism to Figure in Meet with China - New Indian express
India is likely to raise its concerns over Pakistan-sponsored terrorism with China during the counter-terrorism meet, which will take place between the two countries on November 4 here.

According to top government officials, threat dynamics in China is fast-changing and with improvement in relations between the two countries, especially after India relaxed security concerns and started extending ease of doing business facility to the Chinese companies like Huawei, there is more to share between the two countries.

“Counter-terrorism is one such issue where both the countries can enhance cooperation by exchanging information and above all taking note of terrorist activities unleashed by Pakistan based terror outfits,” officials said.

Despite serious concerns raised by National Security Council Secretariat and intelligence agencies, India has given security clearance to at least 20 Chinese companies to do business under ‘Make in India’ initiative over the last couple of months.

Sources in the security establishment said China is well aware of Pakistan’s terror nurseries, and as recent as in January 2015, Afghanistan had extradited to China several Uighurs suspected of having been trained in terror camps in Pakistan.

Reportedly, 300 Chinese extremists in Xinjiang, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, fled to Syria and Iraq to join the Islamic State (IS). The terrorist outfit had also openly declared its territorial ambition towards Xinjiang province.


This was the reason, counter-terrorism figured prominently in the talks during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China in May, where both the sides had reiterated their strong condemnation of and resolute opposition to terrorism in all its forms and committed themselves to cooperate on counter-terrorism.

“We expect China to acknowledge that Pakistan over a period of time has become a fertile ground for terrorists and safe haven for outfits behind the terror activities not only in South Asia, but across the globe,” sources said.

“On the other hand, India, which has been able to keep its youth away from joining the IS to a large extent, can help China to deal with issue of radicalisation,” they added.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by panduranghari »

China and USA both unwilling to define what the 'status quo' is. US because they are not as strong as they were and others are stronger than what they were. China because obfuscation suits them.

That leaves the periphery of the Indo-China sea. India, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines all know what the status quo is.

US-China are, IMO, still running with the idea of G2. All the apparent coercive moves by US-China perhaps are just for show?
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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US Navy plans two or more patrols in South China Sea per quarter - Reuters
The US Navy plans to conduct patrols within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands in the South China Sea about twice a quarter to remind China and other countries about US rights under international law, a US defence official said on Monday.

"We're going to come down to about twice a quarter or a little more than that," said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about Navy operational plans.

"That's the right amount to make it regular but not a constant poke in the eye. It meets the intent to regularly exercise our rights under international law and remind the Chinese and others about our view," the official said.

US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes on Monday said there would be more demonstrations of the US military's commitment to the right to freely navigate in the region.

"That's our interest there ... It's to demonstrate that we will uphold the principle of freedom of navigation," Rhodes told an event hosted by the Defence One media outlet.


Rhodes' comments came a week after a US guided-missile destroyer sailed close to one of Beijing's man-made islands in the South China Sea last week.

China's naval commander last week told his US counterpart that a minor incident could spark war in the South China Sea if the United States did not stop its "provocative acts" in the disputed waterway.

The USS Lassen's patrol was the most significant US challenge yet to the 12-nautical-mile territorial limit China claims around artificial islands it has built in the Spratly Islands archipelago.

China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion of world trade transits every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan all have rival claims.

Rhodes said the goal in the dispute was to come to a diplomatic framework to resolve these issues.

US Vice Admiral John Aquilino, deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans and strategies, declined to comment about when the next patrols would take place.

"We do operations like that all the time around the world. That will continue for us," he told Reuters after his remarks at the same conference. "We'll just keep going."

Defence Secretary Ash Carter may visit a US Navy ship during his upcoming visit to Asia, but is not expected to be on board during any Navy freedom of navigation operations, the US defence official said.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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X-post from STFU-TSP thread

China to ask India about militants’ funding by RAW - DT
NEW DELHI - A high level Chinese delegation is scheduled to visit New Delhi this month, reports in the Indian and international media said.

The newspaper Daily Mail’s investigations indicate that during the upcoming visit, despite other issues, the Chinese side will seek certain explanations from the Indians about RAW’s - India’s intelligence agency - funding and training of militants of ETIM at Kunnar, Nuristan, Kandahar and other parts of Afghanistan for not only carrying out terror acts in China’s Xinjiang but for also creating potential threats to China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) via Balochistan area.

The Chinese side will talk to Indians with solid evidences and will seek strong assurances from Indians about immediately and completely withdrawing it support and all forms and manifestations to ETIM militants in Afghanistan and elsewhere. However the Indian official quarters are not divulging anything about this visit and are keeping mum, the newspaper reported.

China has not discussed the issue of the India’s support to terrorists or separatists of ETIM etc at any formal level with New Delhi. However after the international media reports indicated that there were strong evidences of India financing and training of terror groups like TTP and ETIM on locations inside Afghanistan and with India officially indicating of countering CPEC, China is reported to have taken the issue very seriously, especially with regard to potential threats to CPEC by such India-backed miscreants and saboteurs.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Delhi purposefully riles Beijing as tension mounts in South China Sea - Sachin Parashar, ToI
As tension mounts in the South China Sea (SCS), where the US just sent a guided-missile destroyer to challenge China's fanciful 9-dashed line claim, India is showing it is open to not only aggressively seeking freedom of navigation and overflight throughout the region but also ensuring disputes are resolved in keeping with international laws.

Top government officials here said it was "on purpose" that India mentioned the South China Sea also as West Philippine Sea after foreign minister Sushma Swaraj's recent meeting with her counterpart from the Philippines, secretary of foreign affairs Albert F Del Rosario. It was the Philippines which insisted that South China Sea be referred to also as West Philippine Sea in the joint statement issued after the meeting.

The two leaders recently co-chaired the third India-Philippines Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation. The joint statement issued also referred to South China Sea as West Philippine Sea, the name which Manila has been using only for the past 4-5 years to challenge Beijing's claims over 90 per cent of South China Sea waters, including the Spratly island chain near the Philippines.

This was the first time that India referred to South China Sea also as West Philippine Sea in any official document. It is significant for India that 60 per cent of India's seaborne trade passes through Malacca Strait which opens into the South China Sea. According to government sources here, India is also concerned about China's expanding naval presence in the Indian Ocean region and the fact that Beijing is looking to acquire a base for its navy in Djibouti, located strategically on the horn of Africa.

While PM Narendra Modi did not allude to this issue in his meeting last week with Djibouti President Ismail Guelleh, the government remains concerned about how a base in Djibouti could allow China to operate more freely in Indian Ocean, nullifying the advantage of geography to India in overseeing some of world's busiest shipping lanes.

In the meeting with Swaraj, while he thanked India for goodwill visits by Indian naval ships, Rosario also emphasized that it was high time India started to 'act east and go east' with more such visits by the Indian navy.

In fact, it was during PM Narendra Modi's summit meet with President Obama last year in September when the NDA government seemed to suggest a subtle shift in India's position over South China Sea by mentioning for the first time, in a joint India-US statement, the need for freedom of navigation and overflight in the region. Until then India had refrained from bringing up the issue publicly in any bilateral exchange with the US.

In the meeting with Rosario, India also called for settlement of all disputes by peaceful means and for refraining from the threat or use of force, in accordance with universal principles of international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS. While China has ignored proceedings at the international arbitration court in the Hague, which Manila approached, saying UNCLOS was not applicable in South China Sea, Beijing has used the same UNCLOS to stake claim over Senkaku/ Diaoyu islands in East China Sea.

India's decision to follow the ruling of international arbitration in its own maritime dispute with Bangladesh seems to have given it the moral right to pitch for similar arbitration in South China Sea disputes. In the joint statement, the Philippines recognized the steps taken by India to solve its maritime boundary with Bangladesh, through arbitration at the Permanent Court of Arbitration "and its acceptance of the ruling as an example of peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS by the International Court."
The heading is unfortunately wrong. India simply stands for international agreements, conventions and covenants. We have to remember that China also challenged an Indian naval ship on the high seas in the Indo-China Sea. It is now known that INS Airavat was continuously tracked by PLAN during its entire voyage to the region and the order to challenge her came from the Chinese Naval Headquarters. Almost a year later, in June 2012, a contingent of four Indian naval ships from Philippines to South Korea (and later to visit Shanghai too) received an unexpected message, “Welcome to the South China Sea, Foxtrot-47,” buzzed a People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) frigate to the INS Shivalik (F47).”. For the next 12 hours, the Chinese warship would provide an unscheduled escort to the four Indian vessels. While the tone of the message was welcoming, the content as well as the unwanted escort they provided for 12 hours conveyed the message that those waters belonged to China and the Indian naval ships were guests of China in Chinese waters. That is why freedom of navigation is so important for India too.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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China-U.S. fail to narrow down differences despite talks - Atul Aneja, The Hindu
China has warned that any repetition of the last month’s incident, when a U.S. warship, without consent, sailed through Zhubi reef area, in the South China Sea, can lead to an armed confrontation.

China’s blunt assertion followed remarks by the visiting head of the U.S. Pacific Command, Harry B.Harris. During an address at the Stanford Center of Peking University on Tuesday, Admiral Harris had made it plain the U.S. military “will continue to fly, sail, and operate whenever and wherever international law allows. The South China Sea is not — and will not — be an exception."
His remarks echoed the observation of US Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes, who had stated a day earlier that more ships would follow the lead of USS Lassen, which had transited within a 12 nautical miles zone off the Zhubi reef controlled by China.

Washington has described the manoeuvre carried out by its warship as a “freedom of navigation” exercise in international waters. But the Chinese, who claim sovereignty over the area, have slammed the “freedom of navigation” premise of the US argument. “The so-called issue of freedom of navigation in the South China Sea is a pseudo-proposition… The international waterway is wide enough for the U.S. vessel. Why did it choose to take a detour to show its strength in waters off the relevant islands and reefs of the Nansha (Spratly) Islands and try to justify it in the name of safeguarding navigation freedom? It is blatant provocation," asserted Hua Chunying, a spokesperson for Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday.

A commentary in the state-run China Daily went further, when it stressed that “without proper risk management the current feud over the U.S.’ provocative move will only escalate and could even lead to confrontation”.


The Chinese have followed up their repeated warnings with the deployment of its frontline aircraft in the disputed Spratly islands of the South China Sea. The highly capable Shenyang J-11 fighters — based on the advanced Russian SU-27 jets — have been deployed at Woody Island, called Yongxing Island by China. Analysts say that the U.S. patrol may have given the Chinese a justification to militarise their artificial islands sitting atop the coral reefs in the South China Sea.

The Sino-U.S. military tensions in the Pacific were also underscored last month by the stalking near Japan of the U.S. aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan, by a Chinese attack submarine. A few days later TU-142 bombers from Russia — a close ally of China — also flew within a mile of the Reagan, at a height of 500 feet, triggering a scramble by US F/A-18 planes from the deck of the carrier.

Unsurprisingly, Fan Changlong, vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission (CMC) did not, apparently, mince his words when he met Admiral Harris in Beijing on Tuesday. He pointed out that China is “strongly dissatisfied” with Washington’s moves.

While the military commanders of the two countries conferred in Beijing, China’s Defence Minister, Chang Wanquan and his U.S. counterpart, Ashton Carter met on Tuesday ahead of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ conference in Malaysia.

U.S. officials recounted that Gen. Chang stressed that there was a bottom line to China’s defence of its sovereign territory. South China Sea disputes are expected to feature during the dialogue, but it is unlikely that the U.S. and Japan will succeed in persuading the ASEAN to endorse a statement that the issues are of major concern, signaling that South East Asia is hardly rallying behind the U.S. on South China Sea disputes. {It is incorrect to say that the issue is not a major concern and ASEAN is hardly rallying behind the US&Japan on this matter because the ASEAN operates on a consensus basis and countires like Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar could play truant}
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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S. China Sea row cancels ASEAN joint statement - Jane Perlez
Differences over the South China Sea forced countries from Southeast Asia, along with China and the United States, to cancel a joint statement at a meeting of defence ministers in Malaysia on Wednesday.

The Chinese Ministry of Defense confirmed that the meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, had failed to conclude a joint declaration. In a statement on its website, the ministry implied the United States was the main reason for the breakdown in the discussions.

The ministry did not mention the South China Sea or China’s insistence that the statement not include any mention of the strategic waterway.

Diplomats from the region said that China did not want even a factual statement on the South China Sea to be included in the joint declaration scheduled for the end of the gathering Wednesday afternoon.

The meeting was split between countries that agreed with China and those that strongly disagreed, including Australia, Japan and the United States
, two senior diplomats involved in the talks said. China maintains that its territorial claims in the South China Sea must be discussed with individual countries that also have claims.

It has consistently opposed efforts to have conflicting claims discussed in a regional setting like ASEAN. The defense ministers are meeting in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital, with their counterparts from Australia, India, Japan and the United States.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter was attending the meeting, and the United States led the effort to have the sea accorded a place in the communiqué, the diplomats said.

Carter met with China’s minister of defense, Chang Wanquan, on Tuesday in Malaysia, where the South China Sea was high on the agenda. — New York Times News Service
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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So leaving Australia , Japan and US rest agreed with China surprise if true
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Echoing Modi-Obama agreement, Parrikar calls for freedom of navigation in South China Sea - Ajai Shukla, Business Standard
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has issued a careful, but pointed, message to China over its growing belligerence in maritime disputes in the Eastern Pacific.

Addressing the 3rd ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+) meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, Parrikar called for “freedom of navigation in international waters, the right of passage and over-flight, unimpeded commerce and access to resources in accordance with recognized principles of international law including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea…”


Parrikar’s statement will be read in the context of the “US-India joint strategic vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean region” that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama signed in January. In this, they agreed to cooperate in “safeguarding maritime security and ensuring freedom of navigation and over flight throughout the region, especially in the South China Sea.”

The biennial ADMM+ in Malaysia was marked by deep disagreements between China, on the one hand, and several neighbours --- especially Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines --- which have simmering disputes with China over islands and waters in the Yellow Sea, East China Sea and South China Sea.

So contentious was the meeting that no joint statement was issued. Admitting this, Malaysia’s defence minister, Hishamuddin Hussein, highlighted growing fears that confrontation might inadvertently spiral into war.

“To dwell on the joint declaration is not going to solve the real problem. Our concerns are more real ... unintended accidents at the high sea, which can spiral into something worse and that we must avoid," said Hishamuddin.

Parrikar, like many of his counterparts, urged the early conclusion of a “Code of Conduct on the South China Sea”, to manage confrontation and prevent escalation.

While China has signed the “2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea”, Beijing continues to stonewall a more specific “Code of Conduct”. China prefers to negotiate bilaterally with small regional countries rather than having them ranged against it in a block.

Meanwhile, armed Chinese maritime agencies have engaged in risky confrontations with regional navies, and bolstered its maritime claims by creating artificial islands through large-scale land reclamation.

Illustrating the potential for conflict, the US Navy last week conducted a “freedom of navigation operation”, sailing a destroyer through waters that China claimed, being within 12 nautical miles of a recently reclaimed island. Two People’s Liberation Army (Navy) warships shadowed the US navy destroyer during its passage.

The ADMM+, which was inaugurated in 2010 in Vietnam, brings together the defence ministers of India, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, and the United States with those of the 10 ASEAN countries.

The grouping has identified six relatively non-controversial areas for cooperation --- counterterrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, maritime security, military medicine, peacekeeping and humanitarian mine action.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by Philip »

If the Phillipines want to call the waters the "West P. Sea",then why are we so hesitant in not calling it the Indo-China Sea",which it should be named as the landmass adjoining is called "Indo-China"? Sushma,are you listening?
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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US defence chief visits aircraft carrier in South China Sea
In a symbolic swipe at China's muscular moves in the South China Sea, US defense secretary Ash Carter visited an American aircraft carrier in the disputed waterway.

Carter, who was in Malaysia for two days of talks with Asian defense ministers, used the visit to the USS Theodore Roosevelt to amplify the US view that China is making excessive claims that nearly all of the South China Sea as its territory.

Carter also signaled that the US will keep a strong naval presence in the region in support of nations seeking to preserve stability. He flew aboard the carrier in a V-22 Osprey from a base in the east Malaysian state of Sabah, which is situated on the northern portion of Borneo.

In announcing his visit Wednesday, Carter called it a "symbol of our commitment" to focusing more on US interests in the Asia-Pacific following more than a decade of wars in the Middle East.

Malaysian defense minister Hishammuddin Hussein accompanied Carter to the carrier, highlighting US efforts to strengthen defense partnerships in the Asia-Pacific. Malaysia is among several countries that claim a portion of the South China Sea and disagree with China's building of artificial islands.

The Pentagon also is interested in making arrangements with Malaysia for more regular access to the naval base at Sabah for US aircraft carriers.

It is not unusual for a defense secretary to visit an aircraft carrier. But Carter's visit drew extra attention because of the ship's location and the tensions surrounding China's reclamation work, which Adm. Harry Harris, head of US forces in the Pacific, has likened to building a "great wall of sand" with the potential for confrontations to escalate into armed conflict.

Carter and Hishammuddin were expected to observe the carrier's fighter jet operations and be briefed by Navy officers on their current and recent maneuvers.

Last week the US sent a guided-missile destroyer, the USS Lassen, on a brief patrol inside the 12-nautical-mile radius that China claims as its territorial waters around Subi Reef, an artificial island built by the Chinese. The Chinese denounced the move as provocative and illegal.

Harris has said that while Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan and Malaysia have also done land reclamation in areas of the South China Sea where they have territorial claims, that work is dwarfed by the size and scale of China's buildup. He said on July 24 that in a period of 18 months the Chinese had reclaimed almost 3,000 acres.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by ramana »

In the long run that sea is near China and as the country survives it will assert itself.
No need for India to get tangled in the mess.
We need to understand our threats more clearly.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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India wants China to share counter-terror plan - The Hindu
In 2011, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a charge sheet against Anthony Shimray, the main arms procurer of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) faction, in which it had named the state-owned North China Industries Company for supplying arms to the group. The NSCN-IM signed a framework agreement on peace with India in August.

India and China have decided to cooperate on terrorism and after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit in May, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is set to visit China post-Diwali (November 11). Mr. Singh is expected to further pursue the counter-terrorism cooperation at the bilateral level.

The dialogue has been an annual affair since 2002 and the last meeting took place in 2013 when the UPA was in power. During Wednesday’s talks, the Indian side was led by Additional Secretary Ravi Thapar of the Ministry of External Affairs.

According to a report by central intelligence agencies, China has become a transit hub for circulation of fake Indian currency notes.

India is said to have raised the issue with China and requested it to share the details of recovery of fake currency notes and the persons involved in its circulation in the past couple of years.

“China shared its experience of how it curtailed jihadi activities in Xinjiang province and the steps taken by it to bring in normalcy in the region. We also asked China to help us understand their cyber security network, which is one of the best in the world,” said a senior official.


China, which has been helping Pakistan with financial aid and ramping up infrastructure in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, pressured Islamabad to launch an air strike against Uighur militants. Though the meeting concluded on Wednesday, officials were tight-lipped about the agenda and were not willing to disclose much.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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In India, Li will ink pacts on river and culture - Kallol Bhattacharjee, The Hindu
Li Yuanchao, the Vice-President of China will conclude his India visit by sealing agreements marking cooperation on better river water management and cultural exchanges.

Official sources told The Hindu , Mr. Li who visited Aurangabad and Kolkata before landing in Delhi, will preside over the renewal of the 2013 memorandum of understanding on joint water management which helps India and China share data on multiple Himalayan rivers for better water management.

The second agreement to be signed during Mr. Li’s visit will be on the cultural exhibition on the Gupta period in the Indian history to be held in 2016 in China. Mr. Li visited Ajanta cave complex which holds some of the finest cultural and architectural achievements from the Gupta period. Experts say that Mr. Li’s visit highlights the fact that the Chinese government looks at the Gupta empire with particular interest as it was during this period that the Nalanda university prospered which later on hosted Xuanzang during his visit to India (629-645 AD).

However, the focus of Mr. Li’s visit is expected to be on the renewal of the MoU on smooth sharing of hydrological data related to the common Himalayan rivers.

While a prominent part of the 2013 agreement focused on joint study of Sutlej which originates in the western Tibet region, the other and more important aspect of that agreement was on the hydrological study of the Brahmaputra. It is expected the renewed agreement will also focus on the exchange of hydrological data on Brahmaputra river, though sources in the Ministry of External Affairs are not willing to comment. Sharing of hydrological data during the flood season helps in emergency management and better planning in lower riparian rivers.

B.R. Deepak of JNU, an expert on contemporary China says the agreement is on expected lines and is carefully planned to project a confident Chinese attitude toward India which has been fearful of China’s plans in South Asia.

“Water scarcity is a big issue in China whereas the north-eastern States of India have abundant river water. So hydrological exchanges between India and China are mainly aimed at emergency planning to help India,” Prof. Deepak said.{I do not now what the learned professor's intent was. It is not the question of abundant river water in India. It is simply the question of rights of a lower riparian state. China cannot divert a river like Brahmaputra or siphon off large quantum of water without consulting with the lower riparians like India and Bangladesh who have existing usage for these waters and these usages have existed for centuries. For example, the Upper Siang and Lower Subhansri projects in Arunachal Pradesh, may get affected by the Chinese projects. On the Satluj too, it has built a dam. The massive river water diversion project is only temporarily on hold within China. There are indicators that it is planning to use PNE (peaceful nuclear explosion) in this project. China is not taking the lower riparian states into confidence at all on its massive projects. Apart from making this customary statement, China has, however, shared little specific information about the status of approved or proposed new projects. The issue of the dams was raised by the Indian NSA Shiv Shankar Menon when he met his outgoing Chinese counterpart Dan Bingguo in Beijing in December, 2012. The Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, also took up this issue with the visiting Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang during his state visit to India during May 2013. But, China has not parted with data. The Chinese side is unwilling to consider the long-standing Indian request for a joint mechanism over river water sharing especially concerning the 39 projects identified by China over the Brahmaputra. In June 2014, during Vice President Hamid Ansari’s visit to China to mark the 60th anniversary of Panchsheel, Beijing formally agreed to allow India to “dispatch hydrological experts” to conduct study tours “according to the principle of reciprocity.” But, this will not be enough. China must provide India with complete design details of the dams and/or run-of-river systems and allow inspection and measurements by the lower riparian states, a la IWT. The learned professor seems to be too much concerned about the water crisis in China and forgets the equal if not more disastrous water crisis in India too. Is it a JNU infection?}
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by panduranghari »

The Chinese have already diverted Tsang-Po i.e Brahmaputra in Tibet towards Beijing. They have constructed a channel which goes under the Yangtze so that Tsangpo water does not go into the sea as the Yangtze does.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by SSridhar »

ramana wrote:In the long run that sea is near China and as the country survives it will assert itself.
No need for India to get tangled in the mess.
We need to understand our threats more clearly.
There are many reasons why India will get involved in one way or another in the Indo-China Sea.
  1. India's trade. Almost half of India's trade including to countries such as the US, Japan & Korea happens through the ICS. China's exorbitant and outrageous claims have the potential to impact our trade. It is therefore not as though India is poking its nose where it has no business or need to do so. China wants to create a man-made choke point in ICS as a quid-pro-quo to counter the other natural chokepoints that it fears (Malacca, Bab-al-Mandeeb, Hormuz)
  2. China is already very powerful economically and we cannot allow her to claim 90% of the sea (il)legally along with all its underlying natural wealth (oil & gas). It would be quite another matter if UNCLOS awards it recognizing its claims.
  3. China is very active in the IOR projecting its power and it needs to be checked reciprocally in the ICS. We are not going to be able to do so by our own for another three decades even if our GDP begins to grow at 10% for the next decade. We need an alliance and China has gifted us with an unsolicited opportunity. Fortunately for us, many ASEAN nations, which are fearful of China especially after Xi Jinping's assertive approach, are looking up to us on this issue as a counterbalance and there is convergence with other major powers of Asia, Japan, South Korea and Australia. In any case, China is a common threat for most of them. So, we play our cards carefully, realizing how far we can go etc. But, we cannot let go of this opportunity.
  4. China's attempts to be a regional hegemon are known and a confrontation with China can never be ruled out. Some say it is a question of when and not if. It is in our interests to have it bottled up elsewhere without having a free run. India's political and diplomatic contribution to the ICS issue is therefore to be welcomed. China has today asked India to play a "constructive and positive" role in safeguarding peace and stability in the ICS. India's exploitation of the ICS dispute has to be nuanced and finessed.
  5. China cannot behave out of step with international agreements and conventions and get away with it since it could have an effect on India later. Besides, we have an obligation and self-interest to keep the international order at work.
  6. If China gets away with its outrageous claims, it would increase its strategic influence thus shrinking space for India. It is a zero-sum game.
  7. Today, we cannot even realize or predict all the effects on India of China acquiring stakes over the entire ICS. One thing for sure is it won't be beneficial.
  8. China has been an impediment to India everywhere: ADB & JICA funds for Arunachal, India's entry into UNSC NSG etc., its grand strategy disguised as MSR, obstructing our genuine counter-terrorism moves against Pakistani-based jihadists, strategic relationship with Pakistan with transfers of n-weapons designs and delivery systems and the continuing assistance through the Plutonium route, the leasing of POK to China along with Gwadar, unwilling to delineate boundary and using that as an excuse to incrementally creep into our territory, ousting India from its own backyard etc. It considers as a strategic competitor 'in the making' though it dismisses us arrogantly outwardly. We need to generate counter pressure on China.
  9. No country's threats can be viewed in isolation anymore as complex interdependencies begin to act.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by SSridhar »

India can play constructive, positive role in South China Sea: China - PTI, Economic Times
China today asked India to play a "constructive and positive" role in safeguarding peace and stability in the disputed South China Sea, in a guarded reaction to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's call for ensuring freedom of navigation in the strategic waters amid escalated Sino-US tensions.

"We hope that countries who really care about freedom of navigation in the South China Sea (SCS) can play (a) constructive and positive role" in peace and stability of the region, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying told a media briefing here in response to a question.

She was reacting to Parrikar's assertions at Kuala Lumpur yesterday expressing concerns over the current round of tensions between US and China over an American naval vessel sailing through artificial islands in the SCS built by Beijing.

China has raised vociferous protests and warned Washington against sending naval vessels and military aircraft to the waters.

Speaking at the ASEAN Plus defence ministers meeting, Parrikar expressed hope for a "peaceful resolution of the dispute".

Asserting that maritime security is a common challenge, he said "the situation in the South China Sea and recent developments there have attracted concern".

"This is natural since freedom of navigation in international waters, the right of passage and overflight, unimpeded commerce and access to resources in accordance with recognised principles of international law including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, are of concern to all of us," he added.

Assuring that there is no threat to freedom of navigation in the SCS, Hua said it is a major passage for cargo shipping and energy transportation of China.

"China is the littoral country of the SCS. We, of course, care about freedom of navigation in the region," she said.

"China is committed to safeguarding peace and stability of the SCS together with all relevant countries. As we can see that overall situation in the SCS is stable and there has never been any problem about freedom of navigation and over flights in the SCS," she said.

China has been wary about India's Look East Policy under which New Delhi sought to expand its relations with the South East Asian countries in Beijing's backyard, specially India's fast-developing ties with Vietnam and the Philippines.

About Parrikar's remarks that all parties to the dispute in the SCS will abide by the Declaration on the Conduct (DOC) of Parties reached in 2002, Hua said China and ASEAN countries have been making all out efforts to fully and effectively implement the DOC and deepen maritime cooperation and press ahead with negotiations on Code of Conduct (COC).

"Relevant negotiations have made important headway," she said, adding that China's proposals to maintain peace and stability in the area during last month's ASEAN Defence Ministers meeting in Beijing were "warmly received and responded".

"We are ready to make concerted efforts with ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries to promote defence security cooperation and jointly safeguard peace and stability of the region which also include peace and stability of the SCS," she said.


On US Secretary of Defence Ash Carter's visit to American aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the SCS, Hua said Washington should be "frank and forthright" on the SCS issue.

China is opposed to any actions leading to militarisation of the SCS which pose a threat to other country's sovereignty and security interests in the name of freedom of navigation and overflight, she said.

China has never been opposed to other countries' legitimate rights in real international waterway, she added {like for example IOR or the Pacific but when it comes to ICS, it is entirely ours}.

The country respects and safeguards other countries' freedom of navigation in the region under international law. The US should be more open and transparent on the issue, she said.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by vijaykarthik »

My 2c:

Getting a brickbat from the jurisdiction phase will be a setback for China. The council / tribunal has been smart and mentioned that it will weigh on the 9 dash line only in the merits phase.

It does look likely that Philippines will have the last laugh in this. Legally, it looks like *perhaps* a few of the reefs will be identified as indeed reefs and most of the rocks (which have been made into manmade islands) will be getting little but no territorial waters.

For a longer discourse, I recommend: http://thediplomat.com/2015/11/a-legal- ... on-ruling/

And ICS / SCS is worth going to a war, if reqd. China has used really questionable and specious arguments for the cow tongue claim and it has neither historical not factual basis as a background. [Besides, IIRC, China made its fat claim only after US / Japan made an announcement about 2tn USD deposits of hydrocarbons]

China is a shamless revisionist state and they need a few good lessons to know what's proper in the modern world.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by UlanBatori »

My fear and respect for Chinese strategic planners went up sharply today. They did exactly what I hope I would have done, I was wondering why they didn't do it:
'Hope to see you again' :P : China warship to US destroyer after South China Sea patrol
Exactly. And after saying that I wonder if they all lined up and did a smart "Peeche lautega, peeche mukh!", lowered their pants and did a Lunar SymboliC Gesture while a Banner went up saying
Kiss My Moon!!!
These are dangerous ppl.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by SSridhar »

China stalling India’s exports, says Commerce Minister - The Hindu
Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday expressed concern over China continuing to “make efforts to stall” India’s exports to that country.

The Minister said though emphasis was being laid on sectors such as pharma, IT/ ITES, gems & jewellery, textiles, fruits & vegetables and meat to improve India’s exports to China, that country has been making efforts to stall India’s exports through non-tariff barriers such as phyto-sanitary stipulations and standardisation measures.

She made these comments during a meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee (attached to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry) held in Goa to review India’s trade performance during the current financial year, an official statement said.

India’s merchandise trade deficit with China had shot up from just $1.1 billion in 2003-04 to a huge $48 billion in 2014-15, or around four times India’s shipments to China in the fiscal.

Ms. Sitharaman, who chaired the meeting, said she has already spoken to her Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of G 20 wherein China was apprised of those action points, adding that the Chinese government has accepted India’s stand but had not implemented them.

During the meeting, Dinesh Trivedi, Lok Sabha member, said that most of the imports from China are consumer items and for ‘Make in India’ to be successful, China must be countered. Jyoti Dhurve, Lok Sabha member, stressed the need for diversification in the export market to counter China.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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One-minute handshake marks historic meeting between Xi Jinping and Ma Ying-jeou - Straits Times
A minute-long handshake between China's President Xi Jinping and Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou kicked off the landmark summit between the two leaders at the Shangri-La Hotel on Saturday (Nov 7).

In a historic moment, both men walked onto a carpeted area from different sides of the foyer, met in the middle, smiled broadly and posed for the cameras as hundreds of flashlights popped around them.

Although they looked at each other only momentarily, they stood close and seemed relaxed as they continued shaking hands for a full minute.

The two men then waved before entering a meeting room with other members of their delegations.

There, across a table, both men made remarks which were open to a selection of the media before they had a closed-door meeting.

Mr Xi spoke for three minutes and Mr Ma spoke for seven. At one point when he spoke, Mr Xi began drinking tea and coughing slightly. Chinese security tried to chase the journalists out but Taiwanese security asked the Taiwan media to stay till Mr Ma was about to finish. Chinese security then asserted themselves and chased the journalists out.

Mr Xi, who spoke first, told Mr Ma that the two sides are "one family" and cannot be pulled apart.

"No force can pull us apart," he said in Mandarin, reading from a text.

"We are one family."

He described cross-strait ties as "thicker than blood" and said the "tragedy" of the past should not repeat itself.


Mr Ma, also reading from a text, said he and Mr Xi were meeting today as the leaders of Taiwan and China. He noted that during the 1993 Koo-Wang talks in Singapore between the envoys of the two sides, they inked four agreements and set the foundation for institutionalising cross-strait negotiations.

Recounting a meeting he had with the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew in October 2003 at a East Asia economic summit, Mr Ma said they both agreed that the interest of the people should come first in the development of cross-strait ties.

The fact that he was sitting in the same room as Mr Xi today was the result of efforts by the two sides to replace confrontation with dialogue and reconciliation, he said.

He also raised five points:
  • Strengthen the 1992 consensus and maintain cross-strait peace
  • Reduce animosity, settle disagreements in a peaceful manner
  • Broaden cross-strait exchanges, achieve a win-win situation
  • Set up a cross-strait hotline between Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council and China's Taiwan Affairs Office for emergency matters
  • Work together for the sake of the people
Mr Xi, accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, is on a two-day state visit to Singapore, his first as president. He arrived on Friday evening to a ceremonial welcome and a state banquet.

On Saturday, he opened the China Cultural Centre in the morning before delivering a Singapore Lecture at the National University of Singapore. He told the audience that there will never be a problem with freedom of maritime navigation or overland flights in the South China Sea.

He said that the "starting point and ultimate purpose" of China's policy in the South China Sea is the maintenance of peace and stability, adding that a stable environment for development is the "common interest of all Asian countries".


Later, he met Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Leaders from Singapore and China also exchanged letters to officially launch negotiations to upgrade their bilateral free trade agreement. This sets the two countries on the path to broadening the pact, first inked in 2008, to cover more sophisticated economic areas like trade in services.

Other agreements were also inked, including kickstarting their third government-to-government project in Chongqing in China's western region.

Mr Ma arrived in Singapore earlier on Saturday morning.

The China-Taiwan meeting comes a few months before Mr Ma leaves office. Taiwan will hold a presidential election in January. His Beijing-friendly Kuomintang, or Nationalist party, has caused unease with voters by bringing the two sides closer economically, and its presidential candidate is trailing in opinion polls.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by A_Gupta »

Not sure where to put this.
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-in ... al-2142936

"India less corrupt than China for the first time in 18 years, says Transparency International"
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by member_19686 »

Taiwanese Protest Meetings Between Ma, China's Xi

http://www.voanews.com/content/taiwanes ... um=twitter
A video reaction:

Taiwan-China meeting: Ma & Xi Mister Mister Meeting is a complete farce

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEn3xqrMasc
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by Austin »

Russia & China are ‘challenging the world order’ – US Defense Sec


"Although the US military “do not seek” a new Cold War, it is determined to oppose the rising global powers – Russia and China – in order to protect the US-dominated “international order - Ash Carter
:((
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by SSridhar »

Indonesia may take China to Court over South China Sea - Reuters, ToI
Indonesia could take China to the International Criminal Court (ICC) if Beijing's claim to the majority of the South China Sea and part of Indonesian territory is not resolved through dialogue, Indonesia's security chief said on Wednesday.

Beijing's claim to almost the entire South China Sea is shown on Chinese maps with a nine-dash line that stretches deep into the maritime heart of Southeast Asia, including parts of the Indonesian-held Natuna islands. Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also claim parts of the waterway. The Philippines has already taken China to the ICC in The Hague, a case Beijing refuses to recognise.

Indonesia believes China's claim over parts of the Natuna islands has no legal basis. "We are working very hard on this. We are trying to approach the Chinese," Luhut Panjaitan told reporters. "We would like to see a solution on this in the near future through dialogue, or we could bring it to the International Criminal Court."

"We don't want to see any power projection in this area. We would like a peaceful solution by promoting dialogue. The nine-dash line is a problem we are facing, but not only us. It also directly (impacts) the interests of Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and the Philippines."

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Wednesday the Philippines' case against China before the ICC had strained relations and that it was up to the Philippines to heal the rift.{What an arrogance!}
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by kmkraoind »

Isolated Beijing changes tune after failed US visit
"The Japanese navy claims that once the war breaks out, it can 'clear' the East China Sea Fleet of the Navy of the PLA within four hours. It is not a joke," wrote Liu, a general in the PLA Air Force.

If China starts a war and fails to win, he added, international problems would turn into domestic problems.

According to one Chinese national security specialist, Liu's article was a veiled attempt by President Xi to persuade the military that China is not in a position to engage militarily with the U.S. in the South China Sea, a conflict it would stand no chance of winning and one that would weaken Beijing's control over matters at home.

"Xi launched an observation balloon in the form of an article by a commentator to gauge the possibility of mending ties with Japan," the specialist said. "
But his true focus is on Sino-U.S. relations."
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by member_19686 »

^^

The Liu article referenced above can be read here:

Chinese General Liu Yazhou: Diaoyu Islands and Sino-Japanese relations

http://english.chinamil.com.cn/news-cha ... 722812.htm
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by Prem »

Two U.S. B-52s Flew Near Chinese Man-Made Islands in South China Sea: Pentagon
http://www.newsweek.com/us-bombers-flew ... gon-393684
"The B-52s were on a routine mission in the SCS (South China Sea)," taking off from and returning to Guam, Urban said.Chinese ground controllers contacted the bombers but the aircraft continued their mission unabated, Urban said."We conduct B-52 flights in international air space in that part of the world all the time," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told a news briefing earlier on Thursday.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by vijaykarthik »

^Just came here to post the above news from a different site. :-)
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Rajnath Singh’s China visit to focus on terror, border concerns - Bharti Jain, ToI
Home minister Rajnath Singh will undertake a five-day visit to China starting November 19 to discuss border irritants, terror concerns and security liaisoning. Singh, who will be touring Beijing and Shanghai, is likely to enlist the Chinese government's cooperation to choke illegal supply of arms to insurgent groups operating in India's north-east.

As per the schedule drawn up for Singh's maiden visit to China as home minister, he will reach Beijing on November 18 and hold bilateral discussions over the next two days with his Chinese counterpart and others. The deliberations may seek to resolve the recurring issue of incursions by PLA troops into what India perceives as its side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Singh is expected to emphasize on the Chinese side to follow the laid-down mechanism for addressing border disagreements, including holding timely flag meetings between commanders on the ground.

Singh, incidentally, has been taking a firm line on border incursions, apart from insisting on going ahead with the plan to build border roads in Ladakh as well as in the north-east. He had recently spent a night at an ITBP forward post in Ladakh.


The home minister will spend two days in Shanghai, attending meetings on November 22 and 23. He will head back to Delhi on November 24.

Singh will look to strengthen security liaisoning, seeking timely sharing of intelligence and follow-up action on leads between the two countries. He is expected to take up the issue of funding and sale of illegal arms to north-east insurgent groups.

The issue of terror concerns is likely to come up during Singh's deliberations with the Chinese government.
China faces heightened threat from the Uighurs of its Xingjiang province, with some hardliners among them reportedly having joined the Islamic State (IS). India too is dealing with select instances of its youth being drawn towards violent extremism perpetrated by IS. The two sides are expected to exchanges notes on measures to deal with such threats.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by Prem »

The world’s largest democracy needs the investment of the most advanced one
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/18e47c9a ... z3qghBsdDH
Obama’s pivot to Asia has had a bad press. The moment the US president uttered the phrase, the Middle East demanded closer attention. The scepticism should ease with this week’s deal on a trans-Pacific trade and investment pact. There are hurdles still to jump, but the accord among a dozen Pacific Rim nations speaks to the power of geoeconomics.There is also the view through the other end of the telescope. Washington is not the only party to the strategic realignment under way in Asia in response to China’s rise. Maybe we should be talking about Asia’s pivot to Washington.
I was reminded of this during a week-long study group in India organised by the European Council on Foreign Relations and Germany’s Robert Bosch Foundation. The purpose of a crammed agenda of meetings with politicians, policymakers and scholars was to find out “What India Thinks”. For a bunch of Europeans, one answer was decidedly depressing. Indians may buy German engineering and French jets but, in the game of great power politics, Europe is a bit-part player. The serious rumination is reserved for China and the US: the first viewed as a threat, the second, sotto voce, as an indispensable ally. The two things, of course, are connected.Narendra Modi has been nothing if not energetic on the international stage. The Indian prime minister has visited 20-odd foreign capitals since taking office in May 2014. Old relationships have been refurbished and new ones forged. Mr Modi does not lack ambition. It has become a commonplace to call the 21st the Pacific century. He wants to change that. We should be talking of the Indo-Pacific century.The official account sets India’s foreign policy on two pillars. The first is an inescapable link between economic development and geopolitical weight. Policymakers boast that India is now growing faster than a slowing China. And while China is getting older, India’s demography promises the energy of youth. Fair enough, but the Indian economy is only a fraction of the size of the Chinese economy. Catching up demands decent infrastructure, foreign investment and cutting-edge technologies. And lots of it.So each of Mr Modi’s forays overseas has an economic dimension. When Chinese president Xi Jinping tipped up at the White House the other day, Mr Modi was in California selling the Indian dream to the behemoths of Silicon Valley. The Indian prime minister and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe share a strongman view of leadership, but what adds depth to the relationship is an understanding that Japan and India can do business together.
The second pillar is the neighbourhood. Past leaders have been peremptory in their treatment of smaller neighbours. What energy there has been has been sucked up by the cycle of conflicts with Pakistan. Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan and the rest have been seen as beneath Delhi’s interest. Mr Modi has changed things. The simmering stand-off over Kashmir with Pakistan will always be a source of tension but, albeit yielding varying degrees of success, he understands that great powers do well to dampen disturbances in their own neighbourhood.
More muted in the official foreign policy narrative is the concern about China’s regional ambitions. Beijing has been assiduous in courting India’s neighbours. Mr Xi’s One Belt, One Road strategy is calculated to make China the pre-eminent Eurasian power. For Delhi, the reopening of the silk routes to Europe and the Chinese push into the Indian Ocean feel like encirclement; and that by a power with which India once went to war over still-disputed borders and one that remains Pakistan’s patron.
Mr Modi has to balance such concerns with economic engagement. China is an untapped source of investment and infrastructure know-how. Yet Beijing’s ambitions also provide the context for the deepening of Delhi’s ties with Japan and Australia and the building of new relationships with Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia. The thread through these networks is the quest for a counterweight to an assertive Beijing.
Mr Modi’s pivot to Washington is part of the same picture. India will always be ambivalent about the US. Part of it still hankers for the “strategic autonomy” that came with leadership of the nonaligned movement during the cold war. Visceral pride says India can never be a junior partner in a US-led alliance system. The historically close relationship with Russia also matters; the habit of close collaboration with Moscow has outlasted the collapse of communism.Yet the world’s largest democracy needs the investment and defence equipment that only the world’s most advanced democracy can offer. And the US is the essential guarantor of the effort to check Chinese power. European integration after the second world war was made possible by an overarching US security guarantee. Something similar is true of the alliance systems emerging in Asia: their credibility rests on the connection to the US.India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru once remarked that foreign policy is the outcome of economic policy. He was right. Mr Modi’s dream of an Indo-Pacific century depends on economic modernisation. Yet the change in outlook is palpable. After decades as a big nation with a small worldview, Mr Modi’s India is shaping up as a nation set on remaking Asia’s balance of power.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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China builds observation system in western Pacific ocean - PTI
China has built an observation network backed by submerged buoys in the west Pacific which will help scientists understand the relationship between the ocean currents and climate change, state media reported today.

China's research vessel Kexue or "science," returned to the eastern port city of Qingdao today after wrapping up a 77-day expedition covering 11,000 nautical miles, during which it recovered 15 sets of deep-sea buoys in the west Pacific and retrieved more than 380 pieces of observation equipment, the Institute of Oceanology said.

Wang Fan, the voyage's chief scientist, said another 13 sets of submerged buoys and more than 350 pieces of observation equipment have been placed there, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

"With the retrieved buoys, we have obtained valuable scientific statistics about ocean temperature, salinity and circulation for a year over the tropical West Pacific," Wang said.

The data will help scientists better understand the relationship between the ocean currents in the western Pacific and China's climate change, he said.

Wang said the successful retrieval of the buoys is an indication that China "has built its own observation network for scientific research over the tropical West Pacific."

China completed large-scale installation of submerged buoys in the western Pacific ocean for the first time in October last year.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by Prem »

http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/order-fr ... e-stumbaum
Not a European beauty contest: The French and German approach to China
ithin days of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the U.K., German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande made long-planned trips to China. But their approach differed from British Prime Minister David Cameron’s. Rather than promise to be China’s strongest advocate in the West, the German and French leaders emphasized that more holistic policy coordination—within the EU and with China—can yield the biggest long-term benefits for all parties and for international order.Foreign Exchange Trade System and Deutsche Borse, which operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. For his part, Hollande presided over the signature of one of China’s biggest ever sewage treatment plants, in the southwestern city of Chongqing. French and Chinese leaders agreed on a joint venture related to sewage treatment, primarily aimed at serving Southeast Asian markets. In the nuclear field, the China National Nuclear Corporation agreed to negotiate with troubled French nuclear company Areva and will possibly boost the latter’s capital in the future.. Stressing that China is central to German and French foreign policy—and indeed to European foreign policy writ large—they wrote: “our strategic partnerships with China are here to stay.” They outlined the numerous issues on which French, German, and Chinese interests align, including climate change, Russian aggression, and the Syrian conflict. Closer economic cooperation and “modernization partnerships” are still at the core of the German-Chinese and the Franco-Chinese relationships. Both Germany and France, who also want China to be further bound to international responsibilities, have leverage in the relationship. The primary tool is trade, of course (though the dependencies are really mutual). China needs German and French technologies critical for its modernization drive, including the "Made in China 2025" initiative, which is closely modeled on the German "Industry 4.0" plan adopted in 2013. But French and German leaders view these trade and economic partnerships as engines to work on other issues, particularly political and diplomatic ones. Syria and the European refugee crisis were at the heart of Merkel’s political discussions with Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang. Li pledged support for finding a solution in Syria and participated in last week’s Syria talks in Geneva, for example. For Hollande, climate was at the core of discussions with Chinese leaders, with the Paris U.N. Conference on Climate Change (also known as COP 21) just four weeks away. The French president called China’s support for the conference “essential,” linking the climate issue with business and the economy: "The support of the Chinese is essential. The fight against global warming is a humanitarian issue—how the planet can be preserved—and it is also an issue of considerable economic importance, of what we call green growth." In June, China pledged that by 2030 it would cut its carbon dioxide emissions per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 60 to 65 percent compared to 2005 levels.

At this stage, China’s steps—whether they be climate-related pledges or involvement in conflict resolution—might look small, particularly relative to the challenges ahead. China has not become the “responsible stakeholder” that Americans and Europeans want it to be. But it is also clearly not disengaged with the international system: it has built up alternative structures such as the BRICS bank (the “New Development Bank”) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), for instance, against the backdrop of Western countries holding on to their privileges in international institutions such as the International Monetary Fund.Cameron’s promise to be China’s strongest advocate in the West was not lost on Xi, who knows there is a big difference between a “partner” and an “advocate.” Instead of trying to become China’s lobbyist in the West or entertaining old school national rivalries, it would be better for European countries to concentrate on closer cooperation, both with European partners and with China. Truly comprehensive relationships with China—ones that go beyond short-sighted trade gains—will yield the highest gains in the long run. The German-Franco approach might be still far from perfect, but it is a good step in the right direction
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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IAF to have 7 operational Advanced Landing Grounds in Arunachal Pradesh in a month - Deepshikha Hooda, Economic Times
The Indian Air Force is readying to fully operationalise seven Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) in Arunachal Pradesh after almost two years of repair and reconstruction, a move that promises to provide a major boost to the country's operational capability.

The Rs 720-crore project to develop ALGs got an impetus in 2013, when the state government and the forces witnessed massive construction and development on the Chinese side along the 1,080-km border. The area remains a bone of contention {Indian journalists should not be so neutral. If at all they have to say something, they should boldly say that China is falsely claiming Indian lands} between the Indian and Chinese forces where the line of actual control acts as the de facto border.

"All seven ALGs, except Tawang will be developed by December this year," Air Marshal SB Deo, commanding-in-chief of Western Air Command, told ET. Of the seven ALGs, the one in Walong was inaugurated last month. The rest include ALGs in Mechuka , Vijoynagar, Tuting, Passighat, Ziro and Aalo.

The ALG in Tawang is yet to reach completion, but once it does it will allow for the landing of C-130J Super Hercules, the latest addition to the air force's transport aircraft.

These ALGs will have night landing capabilities that could prove a big asset to the forces manning the borders. These landing grounds will also be used by the civil flights, providing a fillip to infrastructure and tourism in the region.

"The local populations and local government has provided support to a great extent in the venture and this will also provide further impetus for tourism," said Deo. Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha had last month said at a conference that the upgradation of ALGs would enhance the economic development of the Northeastern region.

A similar exercise is being undertaken in Ladakh. Currently the Air Force has one operational ALG at Daulet Beg Oldi. Plans are afoot to develop one ALG at Nyoma and extend the Kargil airfield to enable fighter operations.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by SSridhar »

China tells Obama to keep out of South China Sea disputes - AFP
Beijing said on Wednesday US President Barack Obama should not get involved in disputes in the South China Sea, after he demanded an end to artificial island building in the hotly contested region.

"The United States should stop playing up the South China Sea issue, stop heightening tensions in the South China Sea and stop complicating disputes in the South China Sea," Hong Lei, a foreign ministry spokesman, said at a regular press briefing in Beijing.

"No country has the right to point fingers at" China's construction activities, he added.

The rebuke came after Obama met with Philippine President Benigno Aquino in Manila during the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) gathering.

Beijing has turned a series of reefs and outcrops in disputed waters into artificial islands capable of hosting facilities with military purposes, alarming other claimants.


"We discussed the impact of China's land reclamation and construction activities on regional stability," Obama told reporters after meeting.

"We agree on the need for bold steps to lower tensions, including pledging to halt further reclamation, new construction, and militarisation of disputed areas in the South China Sea."

APEC members the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have rival claims to parts of the sea, which is believed to sit atop vast oil and gas resources.

Beijing claims nearly all of the South China Sea, even waters approaching the coasts of its Asian neighbours.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

Post by A_Gupta »

A CFR article:
http://blogs.cfr.org/asia/2015/11/18/th ... and-india/
Thinking About Armed Confrontation Between China and India, by Daniel Markey
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Chinese Army entered India before Modi met Xi at G-20 - Vijaita Singh, The Hindu
A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the G-20 summit in Antalya, Turkey, the Indian Army reported a transgression by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army at Chushul in Jammu and Kashmir’s Leh district.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is now on a six-day visit to China. A senior official said members of the PLA entered into Indian territory on November 14 and were reportedly shown banners to go back.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Global counter-terror front high on Rajnath Singh’s China visit - Atul Aneja, The Hindu
Home Minister Rajnath Singh has begun a string of meetings in Beijing on Thursday that are expected to focus on India’s participation in a global united front to counter terrorism.

On Thursday, Mr. Singh met Fan Jingyu, party secretary of China’s public security university. In the afternoon, he called on Prime Minister Li Keqiang, signaling that going beyond security, other issues related to Sino-Indian ties are also likely to be on the agenda during that meeting.

Later in the evening the minister will meet Guo Sheng Kun, China's Public Security Minister, who is also the State Councilor in the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC).

Details of India’s active participation in global anti-terror coalition are expected to feature in the talks with Mr. Guo, China’s top police official who is also steering the country’s counter-terrorism drive to combat the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM). The ETIM is an Al-Qaeda linked outfit, whose activism has been growing in China’s northwestern Xinjiang province. Last month at least 50 people were killed by knife-wielding men who attacked a coal mine in Xinjiang.

Mr. Singh is also expected to raise the issue of terrorism emanating from Pakistan, China’s “all weather” ally. Besides, seepage of Chinese weaponry to India’s Myanmar based militants is likely to be discussed.

India has already backed the concept of a united counter-terror front, of which China and Russia have been the chief advocates.

During his address to the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) grouping on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Antalya, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had vigorously advocated a united global effort to combat international terrorism in the backdrop of the Paris attack, allegedly by the Islamic State (IS), as well as the downing of a Russian airliner in Egypt last month. Last Sunday, Mr. Modi had stressed that the “entire humanity must stand together as one against terrorism”. He added: “The need for a united global effort to combat terrorism has never been more urgent. This must also be a priority for BRICS nations.”

China’s focus on fortifying international collaboration to combat terrorism was amplified on Tuesday, when Liu Jieyi, China’s permanent representative to the UN, exhorted “concerned parties” to form a “unified front” to defeat terrorism, during a Security Council debate.

Analysts say that China’s focus on this topic is likely to sharpen, for, as Mr. Singh landed in Beijing on Wednesday evening, there was confirmation that the IS had killed Fan Jinghui, a Chinese national in its captivity.

The tempo on counter-terrorism between the two countries has been growing since the Paris attack, as high level interaction between India and China gets is second wind. During a meeting in New Delhi on Monday between defence minister Manohar Parrikar and China’s visiting Vice Chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission, Fan Changlong, the two sides called “ for cooperation in fighting terrorism,” China Military Online, a website run by China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) reported, citing the Paris attack.

In a posting on Sina Wiebo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, which has a wide public following in China, Prime Minister Modi also pointed to his meeting with Gen. Fan which, he said, included a “wide ranging discussions on India-China ties”. Gen. Fan’s stay followed a visit to India by Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao, which concluded earlier this month.
So far, China has been not only non-cooperative with us but positively supporting terrorism against us through Pakistan and the NE terrorists in the east. India must generate pressure through SCO, an organization specifically formed to tackle terror.
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Re: Managing Chinese Threat (09-08-2014)

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Russia, China agree on $2 billion deal for 24 Su-35 warplanes
http://www.dawn.com/news/1220802/russia ... -warplanes
MOSCOW: Russia and China have agreed on the sale of 24 advanced Sukhoi Su-35 fighters to Beijing, the Russian state holding Rostec said on Thursday.The deal - which military experts say could be worth more than $2 billion - represents the first time a foreign state has purchased the Su-35.A representative of Rostec, speaking to AFP, confirmed a deal had been reached but declined to give details on the price and timeframe for delivery.Moscow and Beijing have reportedly been in talks about the sale for three years, with Chinese media reporting in 2013 that the country had agreed to their purchase.Vasily Kashin, an expert at the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, a leading military and security think tank in Moscow, estimated the deal to be worth more than $2 billion.“The sale will also help fill Russia's state coffers as its economy has been reeling from low oil prices and Western sanctions imposed over the Ukraine crisis.Rostec head Sergei Chemezov told Russian media earlier this month that Moscow was in talks with the United Arab Emirates for the sale of Su-35s.On its website, Sukhoi describes the Su-35 as an upgraded “fourth-generation” multirole fighter, which first flew as an experimental model in 2007, capable of delivering eight tonnes of ordnance.
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