- The line of actual control (LAC) along the eastern Ladakh border is on the boil for over a year owing to China’s belligerence and ambitions to indulge in illegal expansion on the international borders. Laying false claims to territorial ownership along the border areas has become a norm of sorts for the Chinese leadership without bothering about the implications on the global firmament over such a lop-sided move. The increasingly devil-may-care attitude to maintain widely accepted global world order is proving to be Beijing’s geostrategic policy which has only enabled many nations to gang up against China. Not that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is bothered with the altered equations where newer alliances are getting forged against it.
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- Against this backdrop, China’s new land border law announced recently may have serious ramifications for India’s ongoing dispute on the LAC. The new law, which comes into effect on 01st January 2022 aims to strengthen Beijing’s control over its border areas by stipulating that China’s territorial integrity is inviolable. Operationally, it enjoins the Chinese military to carry out border drills and provides state support for the construction of border towns, strengthening of border defences, and better integration of populations inhabiting border areas. In simple words, China is looking to legally formalize its claims over its disputed land borders by building permanent infrastructure and control systems in these areas. So much for being a responsible nation.
- It is amply clear from the above that the ongoing India-China border standoff from Chinese unprovoked encroachment of Indian territory in eastern Ladakh has a slim chance of satisfactory resolution. At the most, there could be temporary on-ground adjustments like the establishment of the no-patrolling zone at Pangong Tso. Nonetheless, fundamentally the new law allows the Chinese establishment not to budge from its illegal border claims. Make no mistake, there is no way the India-China boundary negotiation mechanism is going to yield any tangible result making it nothing but a futile exercise catering to a global audience and lacking in substance. This will force the Indian establishment to deploy its army along the LA in sizeable strength to prevent further Chinese ingress. So, the Indian military should be prepared for the altered equations on the LAC from now on.
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- Further, the Indian policymakers should be revisiting their strategies vis-à-vis border matters related to China which is bound to change the dynamics for good. Reading between the lines on the new border law, China is not bothered anymore about India’s strategy of linking the resolution of the border dispute with the overall bilateral relationship. Indian thinktank was hoping against hope that China would be forced to make some concessions to accommodate New Delhi’s genuine concerns keeping in mind the burgeoning trade relationships. Alas! Beijing is clearly signaling that it won’t sacrifice its border claims to improve two-way ties. Thus, an aggressive, inflexible, and belligerent China is here to stay. Let us be prepared to face the challenges.
