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India & World
By P. S. Suryanarayana
A concerted effort has begun to firm up the prospects of new economic linkages, while the strategic and political aspects of the qualitatively significant bilateral engagement are being subjected to a reality check. According to diplomatic sources on both sides, the latest bilateral Declaration on Principles of Relations and Comprehensive Cooperation is "an important document'' that goes beyond the fine print in its implications for the future. Three dimensions of the Sino-Indian interactions of the present moment are considered crucial to the future development of the relationship. These pertain to the management of the Pakistan factor in the Sino-Indian equation, the process of a possible boundary settlement, and the forward-looking approach in addressing the questions of Tibet and Sikkim. The Pakistan factor in the Sino-Indian nexus has not been erased at all as a result of the latest mission by Mr. Vajpayee to China. As diplomatic sources in the Asia Pacific region have indicated to this correspondent, the issue is one of Pakistan being "China's Israel'' in a strategic sense of foreign policy. There is nothing definitive at this stage to indicate that this will no longer be the case. However, China's strategic realism in recent years has been demonstrated by the manner in which Beijing has refrained from boosting Islamabad's game plans either during the Kargil war or at the time of the heightened Pakistan-India tensions following the terrorist attack on India's Parliament House. The inside story is said to be related to China's "re-adjustment'' of its foreign policy after the Cold War that ended completely by the early 1990s. This explains how the Pakistan factor in the Sino-Indian equation has been managed at this stage without being solved to official India's satisfaction, though. Not surprisingly, Pakistan is seen here to be keen on re-engaging China at the highest level in this specific context. Secondly, the appointment of special representatives to discuss the Sino-Indian border dispute is seen from the political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship, is considered to be a joint initiative in spirit, regardless of how the idea emanated in the first place. The idea itself is derived from the process of the bilateral dialogue that has taken place with regard to the boundary question over a period of years. This is seen as a positive backdrop for the future negotiations on the border problem. As for the implications of the forward-looking approach on issues such as Tibet and Sikkim, the "misunderstandings'' over the Tibetan question are now a matter of the past. Regardless of the quibbling in some sections of the Indian camp over the new formulation on Tibet, China is convinced that New Delhi has pledged itself to the politically correct stand. On the other hand, India too has signalled a message that there is no question of New Delhi trying to detach Tibet from China. On Sikkim, a pointer to the possibility of an eventual India-friendly settlement is the indication that Beijing itself has helped New Delhi identify the market area in Sikkim for the purposes of trade on the China-India border.
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