Yuan Peng, Vice President, and Dr. HU Shisheng, director, respectively of the Institute of South & Southeast Asian and Oceanian Studies, China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, Beijing, spoke to Gateway House about working towards ‘the final goal of denuclearisation’, India-China relations since the Doklam stand-off and addressing security concerns raised by the Belt and Road Initiative
Courtesy: Gateway House
Border regions and communities, some of them far from the heartland, constitute India’s first line of defence, a critical link in its national security. India’s 15,000-km borders touch seven neighbouring countries: Afghanistan (abutting Gilgit), Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Bangladesh, Myanmar. Border regions have their own local dynamics, often shaped by subnational and religious identities that do not necessarily align neatly with political borders. Some also serve as flourishing corridors for illegal smuggling of goods and humans. Technology plays an important role in better protecting borders, but in some cases it has made borders obsolete. Despite their importance, border regions do not receive the full attention of the Indian mainstream, except when border tensions arise.
Courtesy: Sameer Patil
With India distracted in the Kashmir Valley, the critical border region of Ladakh has become a target of Chinese attention. Beijing appears to be exploiting Buddhist sectarian rivalries as it did in Tibet
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Recent Gateway House research publication, Chinese Investments in South Asia, was mentioned in a news report by the Maldives Independent. The article talks about Maldives President Nasheed declaring plans to renegotiate Chinese investments in the island nation and the accompanying debt. Read more
Courtesy: Wikipedia
The high cost and political impact of Chinese-funded infrastructure in countries like Myanmar, Malaysia and Sri Lanka make it imperative for India to work with Japan to provide alternatives, to ensure that the region is neither bankrupted nor militarised by Chinese influence.
Courtesy: Chinanews
Pakistan is about to launch two military satellites in June with aid from China. It is pursuing its renewed space programme, using the same clandestine tactics it used for developing its atomic programme
Courtesy: Gateway House
China’s ostensible intentions are to turn Gwadar port into a focal point of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. But the geography of the region is a major stumbling block in the realisation of these ambitions and raises questions about the project’s underlying motives
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"The current Sri Lankan government has said that it will not permit military use of the facility, but that could change," said Amit Bhandari, an analyst at Mumbai-based Gateway House. "Ninety-nine years is a long time after all."
Courtesy: The Third Pole
Pakistan’s economic mismanagement and support for terrorism will leave its economy in a hole – and imperil the multibillion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
Courtesy: Gateway House
China is steadily deploying state-of-the-art communications systems to connect its strategic and economic assets in Asia. It is then linkingthe Asian mainland to Africa, and Africa to South America. The investment spree is rapidly making Beijing a major player in global telecommunications – and ‘informationisation warfare’.
