Unity of purpose in India-China ties

INDIA and China have, of late, been showing maturity in their relations. Chinese Defence Minister General Cao Gangchuan's invitation to the Indian Air Force to observe future Red Army exercises and the reciprocal invitation from Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes shows the bitterness the latter created when he described China as "enemy No. 1" has become a thing of the past. There is nothing surprising in the invitation as the two countries had conducted a joint naval exercise recently. These are all signs that the world's most populous countries have come to terms with each other and their bilateral relations are no longer haunted by the 1962 war. Yet, there is realisation on both sides that if the boundary dispute is resolved, it will give further boost to their diplomatic and economic relations.

The leaderships of the two countries are realistic enough not to allow the frontier dispute to affect other facets of their relations. Bilateral trade has recorded rapid growth from $265 million in 1991 to $3,596 million in 2001. Of course, the volume is small compared to the size of their total foreign trade. Many Indian companies like Ranbaxy and NIIT have established joint ventures while others like Orind and Infosys have set up wholly owned ventures in China. Indeed the manner in which India and China have handled their ties provides a model that India wants to follow in settling its problems with Pakistan.

All this is not to suggest that India has been gung ho about embracing China. It is deeply impressed by China's dynamism and the rapid development of the Chinese economy over the past two decades. Strategically, India has reason to treat its northern neighbour warily. Chinese collaboration with Pakistan in developing the latter's nuclear weapons and missile programmes is difficult to understand. At the same time, India and China do not want to be prisoners of the past for they know that the manner in which they manage their relations will have a profound impact on the future balance of power in Asia, perhaps of the world. India and China have much in common and they can build on it, step by step.