(TibetanReview.net, Aug31’24) – India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has on Aug 31 noted that there is a general China problem being debated in many countries of the world, and India is not the only one facing issues with it. However, India’s problems with China are particularly significant, extending beyond the shared concerns of the international community, timesofindia.com Aug 31 cited Jaishankar as saying during a conversation with Pranab Dhal Samanta at the ET World Leaders Forum in Delhi.
“There is a general China problem, apart from our own difficult situation in the border. We are not the only country in the world which is having a debate about China. Go to Europe, and ask them what is today among your major economic or national security debates? It’s about China. Look at the United States (of America). It’s obsessed with China, and rightly so in many ways. So, the fact is let’s not make out as though it’s only India which has a China problem.”
Elaborating on it further, Jaishankar has said, “Decades ago the world decided to overlook problems in China. Now everyone has a problem. India has a special China problem, over and above the world’s China problem. Because there is a general problem, apart from our border situation, the sensible thing to do is take precautions which a country like India should be taking.”
He has said one of these precautions is to scrutinize Chinese investments in India.
“It has never been the government’s position that we should not be having investments from China or doing business with China. But on the investment issue it is common sense that investments from China would be scrutinized. I think the border, and the state of relations between India and China call for it.”
And he has stressed the importance of carefully examining investments originating from China before granting approval. He has noted that even countries without shared borders with China are subjecting Chinese investments to increased scrutiny, although the level of examination may vary.
The minister emphasized the delicate balance between economic considerations and national security, remarking, “There is a thin line between economics and national security in most cases,” reported businesstoday.in Aug 31.
The minister’s remarks came as both India and China spoke positively about the atmospherics of the 31st meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) which was held in Beijing on Aug 29 and their desires and goals. However, India again differed from China by its insistence that normalizing the border situation was prerequisite for resuming normal overall ties.
China and India held six rounds of WMCC meetings on border affairs in 2020 following the Galwan Valley border skirmish on Jun 15, 2020. Except for that year, since the first WMCC meeting on border affairs started in 2012, the two sides have held WMCC meetings on border affairs one to three times a year, China’s official globaltimes.cn Aug 31 cited analysts as saying.
It cited the analysts as also saying that the recent frequent interactions signalled that both sides were actively seeking to accelerate a resolution to the border standoff and to get bilateral relations back on track.