Indian think-tank cautious over US war doctrine against China

Chennai:

US new war doctrine against China last year and America’s riveting towards Asia has resulted in Indian think-tanks stressing the need for India’s own analysis of China rather than getting influenced by US policy makers.

Speaking during a seminar on ‘Re-evaluating US foreign Policy Towards Asia’, organized by Chennai Centre for China Studies and University of Madras and Centre for Asia Studies, experts, who included former diplomats, academicians and bureaucrats, cautioned that India should not do anything to antagonize China under US influence but be a self-confident and autonomous actor in international polity.

B Raman, former additional secretary of India, said that Obama administration has declared its war doctrine to curb China’s cyberwar capabilities besides protecting its $ 1.2 trillion trade through South China sea. He said US is concerned over the growing threat to its critical infrastructure through China’s cyberwar capabilities.

“The US nervousness is increased by the fact that while considerable information is available on China’s modernisation and expansion of its conventional, nuclear and space-related capabilities, very little information is available on China’s cyber war capabilities. The US is determined to prevent China from acquiring an asymmetric advantage in cyber space by threatening China with a military response against targets in its territory to neutralise its cyber war capabilities should it become necessary,” he added.

“The new Pentagon document talks of is a network of US allies and partners to contain China. Though not explicitly stated, the US obviously views Japan, South Korea and Australia as allies in this network and India, Vietnam, the Philippines and possibly other ASEAN countries as partners,” Raman added.

Stressing on the need for India to evolve its own strategy for dealing with China, he said India’s interest would be better protected through a mutually assisted and reinforced relationship on a one-to-one basis with a gradually expanding basket of issues that could promote a strategic convergence.

Prof K P Vijayalakshmi, chairperson of Centre for Canadian, US and Latin American Studies, Jawahar Lal Nehru University said US-China ties are love-hate ties which reached a high during the war on terror to the lows like bombing of China’s Belgrade embassy in 1999 questioned whether it is fear of US decline that is why the overtures to Asia which till now was considered the backwaters of US foreign policy.

N Narasimhan, former Union secretary, said that India should not do anything to upset China but it would be nice to make them guess what India is upto.

Former diplomat C V Ranganathan said India should be self confident and an independent actor in international relations. D S Rajan, director of Chennai Centre for China Studies, B S Raghavan, chairperson of Chennai Centre for China studies also spoke on the occasion.