The Hindu : National : “India-China border row can end with better political ties”

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“India-China border row can end with better political ties”

G. Krishnakumar

Difficult to change world order unless both nations cooperate: Yan Xuetong

Yan Xuetong

KOCHI: India-China border dispute could be resolved by improving political relations, renowned academician and Director of the Institute of International Studies at Tsinghua University Yan Xuetong said on Tuesday.

A border settlement was a settlement through negotiations, Prof. Yan, an international expert on China’s foreign policy, said in an interview to The Hindu.

It would be negotiations based on political will rather than military capability. Even if the border issue was not fully resolved in next 5 or 10 years, political relations would improve.

In Kochi to attend the international conference on “The India-China-U.S.A. Triangle”, Professor Yan said China had improved its political relationship with other countries without settling border disputes.

Author of several books including Practical Methods of International Studies (2001) and American Hegemony and China’s Security (2000), Prof. Yan shared his views on issues ranging from nuclear cooperation to Indo-U.S. relations during the half-hour interview.

“We cannot expect to improve the political relationship after settling the border dispute. As long as we improve our political relation, we can gradually move from freezing our border issue to settling our border issue,” he said.

Military relationship

Pointing out that it would not be possible to expect military relationship between both countries to grow very fast, he said it (the relationship) would not turn back. Military relationship was based on political will. “As long as Indian and Chinese leaders want to improve their relationship, I do not see any serious mutual conflict between us.”

While pointing out that India was in a favourable position of being wooed by all major powers, he said he doubted whether India’s international status would increase even if it became an American ally.

“Look at Japan. Its international status never increased being an ally of the U.S., but because of its oil economy. We cannot become more important because we are an ally of anyone.”

Nuclear cooperation

Professor Yan said nuclear cooperation between New Delhi and Beijing would start once India joined the Non-Proliferation Treaty agreement.

Asserting that economic relationship between India and China would grow faster than in any other sector in the next 10 years, he said it would develop faster than military relationship.

“China and India’s economic relationship will grow faster than China’s relationship with the U.S. in the next 15 years.”

Pointing out that it was very difficult to change the world order unless India and China cooperated, he said both countries could modify it once there was substantial cooperation. “If these two guys cooperate with each other they will change the world. If they confront each other, they would maintain the world the same.”

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