Sino-Indian relations today: Some basic issues

New Delhi, June 24 : It is by now generally acknowledged that Prime Minister Modi’s successes during the first year of his rule have been mostly in the area of foreign affairs.
Modi’s outreach to neighbours – be it Bhutan which was the first country he visited, Nepal, which he visited twice during the year, Sri Lanka or recently Bangladesh – have all yielded positive optics.
His visit to countries such as the US, Canada, Germany, France and Australia can also considered to be successful though, the actual deliverables will only be known later. Pakistan continues to present problems to Prime Minister Modi and the mandarins in South Block. However, it is the relationship with China that has thrown major challenges to Modi’s foreign policy initiatives. It would be instructive to see how the relationship with China is developing now and what options India has.
One of the reasons why PM Modi’s accession to power in May 2014 was considered significant by the global community was because of the majority he received in the elections, and because of this mandate, he was considered to be able to take strong actions needed to improve relations in the region and globally.
His personality, which has been perceived as decisive as against the vacillating personality of some of the earlier leaders, was also considered favourably by global leaders and analysts.China, however, was in the process of its own change with the coming to power of President Xi Jinping in March 2013 and his efforts to give new direction to the country. It will be interesting to examine how this refashioning of China by President Xi Jinping is affecting its relationship with India, and how, does the Chinese leadership perceive India now.The 1962 border war between China and India continues to be a watershed event in Sino-Indian relations. However, unlike in India, where, the 1962 war still evokes strong feelings of hurt, in China it is treated as just one more chapter in the adjustment process of a post-colonial period.
Again, while in India the relationship with China is considered to be arguably one of the most important aspects of India’s foreign policy along with relations with Pakistan and the USA, in China, the relation with India is perceived today as only marginally important. China perceives itself as one of the “poles” of a new multi-polar order, with the US and Europe as other two poles.
The relationship with India, though important in a regional context, is not, in the Chinese view, critical to the success of their foreign policy. China also sees the issue of Tibet, along with Taiwan, as its core national issues, and their relationship with India, is inextricably linked with the Tibet issue, particularly since the Tibetan Government-in-exile and the Dalai Lama are located in Dharmshala in India.