India frequently and assertively tries to shape comments from the United States on Pakistan during crises, but it does not do so in the case of China, said Dr. Joshua T. White, a former White House and Pentagon official in the Barack Obama administration.
“The U.S. is largely sympathetic to the challenge that India faces in dealing with a territorially assertive China. Given the nature of Sino-Indian disputes, India technically does not ask for our help because it does not need it. But it knows that Washington presents a sympathetic ear and that if there were to be wider a Sino-Indian crisis, we will have a totally different conversation,” Dr. White said in conversation with The Hindu .
This is in complete contrast to the approach taken on issues concerning Pakistan, where New Delhi is quite keen for condemnation of Islamabad’s actions from Washington, he added.
“It is understandable that India more frequently and assertively tries to shape U.S. comments on Pakistan, given the nature of the U.S. relationship with Pakistan and the ways in which the U.S. has, by default, served as an intermediary in a crisis,” Dr. White stated.
Doklam standoff
India is presently engaged in a major standoff with China at Doklam near the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction. On the Western side, there has been a flare-up in tensions along the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. While the India-China stand off began in June 16, the flare up on the LoC has been going on since the terror attack on the Army camp in Uri in September last year.
In the early hours after Uri, India was quite assertive in wanting the U.S. government to label this incident as a cross border attack from Pakistan, said Dr. White, who is now an Associate Professor and Fellow at the Johns Hopkins University.
While the U.S. was sympathetic to the Indian position, he said, “We wanted to do our own assessment of the attribution before we made a statement.”
That assessment took a few days following which he said the US Government could say it was an act of cross border groups from Pakistan and “US also communicated that in a certain way we hold Pakistan culpable for such activities on the basis of its negligence.”
Surgical strikes
On the surgical strikes on terror camps across the LoC after Uri attack, Dr. White said there was a general appreciation that the Indian surgical strike was calibrated and the messaging after the strike was crisp and careful.
Having said that he cautioned, “That said there remains a concern in Washington that India may have over interpreted its success and may believe that it can run a similar play next time with similar results.”
I am not confident that Pakistan will necessarily respond with such restraint next time, Dr. White added.
