Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had personally asked the Chinese President Xi Jinping in Tashkent last year to let India become a fellow member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) - but President Xi just smiled and shook his head.
China remains the only major power who opposes India's entry into NSG and it is the only country which has opposed sanctions against Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Masood Azhar in United Nations. China is going ahead with China-Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC) in Pak Occupied Kashmir despite India’s protest. Now, after many years India under Modi is playing Tibet card with China. India has shown China that it will not buckle down under Chinese pressure.
Indian government has not played Tibet card against the Chinese since a long time. Many previous governments didn’t want to agonize China over Tibet. But situations have changed dramatically now under Mr. Modi. It seems that India is no longer afraid of taking on China publicly at a time when China is openly siding with Pakistan against India in different multinational forums.
The Dalai Lama had visited Tawang on many occasions in past but this time the Chinese are rattled. China knows that they are on a soft wicket in Tibet and Dalai Lama is a well-respected figure across the globe. But nowadays China reacts vigorously against any country which entertains the Dalai Lama. Last year China literally punished Mongolia by blocking its trade routes over the Dalai Lama’s visit. Protests in Tibet before 2008 Beijing Olympics had caused huge embarrassment to China. Dalai Lama is a resident of India and is only remaining symbol of the Chinese capture of Tibet in 1950s. He is 81 and not getting any younger. So Modi wants to use him as much he can before its too late. If China has problem with Dalai Lama’s visit then why has it ignored India’s concern about CPEC in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (POK). POK is officially part of India and China has no legal right to build infrastructure projects there.
Chinese Government has said it will soon teach India a lesson. Chinese media is saying that now China will intervene in Kashmir dispute. I think India should make clear that we are not afraid of China. If China attacks us, 1.3 billion people will fight against Chinese imperialism. India is not Chinese satellite stake Mongolia, Cambodia or Pakistan. We are a sovereign nation and China has no right to interfere in our own affairs. Any Indian resident has right to visit at any place in India for religious & non-political activities. The Dalai Lama is our guest and Indians have a tradition to sacrifice their own interests for saving the honour of guests.
China may be a growing power but India is also not a declining power. Our GDP may be 3 times less than that of China, our armed forces may be smaller that that of China, we may have less weapons or nuclear bombs than China, but this doesn’t mean that we can’t defend our interests. We are fully capable of fighting China on multilateral forums. India has not given an inch on NSG or Azhar issue despite Chinese oppositions. The more China opposes Indian entry into NSG, the more India's stake get stronger. This is a new and confident India. We will not buckle down under any diplomatic pressure and China can’t ignore world’s 3rd largest economy (on Purchasing Power Parity basis).
The biggest problem with China is that it doesn’t want to see a growing power at its southern border. The continuous India-China diplomatic skirmishes may send India into a strong strategic partnership with Japan & Australia. An axis of Japan-India-Australia (even without US support) may be more than enough to handle China in Asia.
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