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Relations between India and China have always stood the test of time with ups and downs.Both the countries with the largest population of the world have been the heirs of thousands of years of civilization. There has been a long series of political and strategic competition and agreements related to cooperation and mutual interest between the two countries. India has always been emphasising and building positive relations with all its neighbouring countries; it has tried the same with China. From Jawaharlal Nehru to the present government, India has made every effort to forge a cordial relationship with China. After independence, India-China relations are a story of Chinese betrayal and the idealism, dreaminess, and short-sightedness of Indian leaders. The biggest difficulty in the path of Indo-China friendship is that India’s political, economic, and social systems and institutions are different from the Chinese communist system and its institutions. India’s foreign policy is based on the principles of peaceful coexistence and Panchsheel. India does not want to terrorise anyone with its power. It is not communist and expansionist, whereas China is the nurturer of aggressive, expansionist, and imperialist policies, which are capable, strong, and willing to monopolise Asia. For this, it does not hesitate to adopt the means of sabotage, terror, deceit, and violence. As China’s rival in Asia, India has the ability to give it a tough competition in terms of populations, power, and natural resources, but because China has not accepted it, it keeps looking for such opportunities. when he could prove India to the world as a weak and second-class country in Asia. India's emergence as a power, its economic prosperity, and its attaining political strength are the cause of envy, hatred, and animosity for China.

India-China Relations: A Historical Perspective (From 1949 to 2013)

The biggest proof of India’s divergent attitude towards China is India’s welcome to the communist revolution in China in October 1949. India was the first country among non-communist countries to give political recognition to China, regardless of America’s displeasure. India supported China in the Korean War. India has always criticised America’s policies for hindering China’s rightful place in international conferences or institutions. India and China have had a complex relationship since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Here's an overview of the key events in their relations from 1949 to 2013:

1949-1962:

1. India was one of the first countries to recognize the People's Republic of China, and the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1950.

2. However, there were border disputes between India and China, particularly over the region of Aksai Chin, which China claimed as part of Xinjiang and India claimed as part of Ladakh.

3. The two countries went to war in 1962, which India lost. China withdrew its troops from India's northeastern border areas after the war.

1963-1988:

4. India and China continued to have border disputes, but tensions between the two countries decreased.

5. India supported China's admission to the United Nations in 1971.

6. India and China signed a treaty in 1993 to maintain peace and tranquility along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the India-China border areas.

1989-2013:

7. India and China improved their economic ties, with trade increasing rapidly in the 2000s. The two countries also held regular high-level meetings to discuss economic and political issues.

8. However, border disputes continued, and there were occasional military standoffs, particularly in the 2010s.

9. In 2013, China established an Air Defense Identification Zone over the East China Sea, which overlapped with the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands claimed by Japan and China. India expressed concern about the zone, as it also covered the disputed region of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims as part of southern Tibet.

Overall, India and China have had a complicated relationship over the past several decades, with economic ties increasing but border disputes and occasional military standoffs continuing to create tensions.

For this paper many books, research papers, websites i.e. A Complete Run-Down of the IPEF, the Wire (2022), China,India to commence withdrawal of forces from shared border, TASS (2021), an article US Indo-Pacific Strategy to Back India’s Rise, Business Standard (2022), China remains top trade partner of India, not US', Outlook, (2022) has been studied.

After 2014

Political

Since 2014, when the NDA government took over the reins, keeping in mind the deterring relationship between India and China, an attempt was made to start it afresh. Under this, the president of China was invited to visit India from September 17–19, and a total of 16 agreements were signed in various sectors, including railway, trade and commerce, space cooperation, culture, sister-city agreements, etc. And the most important of these is associated with the reverence of millions of people. The two sides signed an agreement to open an additional route for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra¹. The series of meetings continued in 2016 to strengthen the relationship. President Pranab Mukherjee visited China on May 24, 2016, where he delivered his keynote address at the Peking University. The visit saw the signing of 10 agreements that are related to higher education among higher education institutions. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present for the G-20 meeting on September 16, 2016 and the BRICS meeting on September 17, 2017. In this row, Xi Jinping came to Goa in October 2016 to attend BRICS summits. All these meetings did not lead to any significant conclusions. Even though China kept talking about peace, it never showed peace on the border.  The second informal meeting of the prime minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, and the president of China, XI Jinping, was held in Chennai from October 11 to 12, 2019. After the meeting, Vice Foreign Minister Luo zhaohui briefed the media and said both sides are committed to building peace, security, and prosperity and also talked about protecting the interests of developing countries. The challenges faced by development, including tackling climate change and development goals, were also highlighted. The two leaders agreed that China and India are prone to terrorism and that both are committed to combating terrorism².

Trade

The India-China trade relationship is considered to be the strongest, and it is increasing continuously every year. Chinese companies have occupied India’s market. To get out of this, we will have to curb imports consciously. This epidemic of corona has taught India that now there is a great need for us to become self-reliant (Aatm-nirbhar). India-China trade in 1990 was around $0.2 billion³, which was not even in the top five. And China-India trade has reached USD 119.42 billion in 2021. But this year, the United States of America has overtaken China to become India’s largest trading partner. Responding to this, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that “china remains the largest trade partner of India and for the first time the bilateral trade exceeded USD 100 billion in 2021.” -(zho Lijian⁴)  India is always in trade deficit on trade with China, whereas China is in trade surplus. To tackle this, the centre has also been proactive in implementing the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to boost the manufacturing sector. In India, China is currently India’s single largest trading partner, while India was China’s 7th largest trading partner. India has been largely exporting raw materials such as minerals, organic chemicals, and manufactured goods like machinery, steel, and textiles. Chinese investment in India is certainly on the rise. Instead of bringing its own capital to India, China is exporting those projects to India that are dependent on Indian capital. From 2000 to 2017, the total FDI from China to India was only 1.7 billion US dollars. where China's share was only around 0.50%, which correctly indicates that China is not a significant investor in India compared to Singapore, Switzerland, and Mauritius. Because of cheap labour, China offers low-cost imports like textile and electronics equipment, machinery, etc. Apart from this, Chinese goods are dumped in large quantities in India. Due to this, our companies are not able to survive, and the goods of China become dominant. In the last few years, many companies in India have been locked down. The electronics goods were occupied by 60% until 2018, which has increased to 81% in 2020. Taiwan holds 60% of the world’s share of semiconductor chip production and exports. After Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, India took advantage of the increasing tension between China and Taiwan. Taiwan’s largest semiconductor chip maker company, Foxconn, signed a $20 billion deal with India’s Vendanta⁵. Th Centre also plans to snatch factories from China, and it will cost a total of $ 1.2 trillion under PM Gati Shakti Yojana⁶.

Indo-Pacific

Given the growing importance of Indo-Pacific, the ministry of external affairs established a new division for the Indo-Pacific in April 2019 with the aim of strengthening India’s vision. Indo-Pacific division deals with matters relating to the Indo-Pacific, India-ASEAN relations, East Asia summit, Indian Ocean Rim association (IORA), Asia-Europe meeting (ASEM), Mekong-Ganga cooperation (MGC), and Ayeyawady-chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACEMECS)⁷. Obviously, China strongly condemns this and stands for Indo-Pacific IS: “Facts will prove that the so-called Indo-Pacific strategy is in essence a strategy to create division to incite confrontation and undermine peace (Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi)⁸.

And on the other hand, China is investing heavily in Pakistan with the help of the CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) project in Pakistan to increase its lead on the Indo-Pacific. The project aims to connect Pakistan’s Gwadar port at the mouth of the Persian Gulf with Kashgar in Xinjiang by road, rail, and energy pipeline. China has officially committed anywhere between $46 and 62 billion for this flagship project, which comes under the BRI (belt and road initiative). Concern grew when it became known that the Pakistani army had raised a division of 15000 soldiers with a specific mission to protect CPEC⁹, while its navy had also established “Task Force 88” to defend Gwadar. To keep an eye on India, China occupied Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port in the name of investment. Now China is doing its work to establish itself in the Indo-Pacific.

In contrast, India has taken an important decision by joining QUAD. The objective of QUAD is to maintain respect for human rights, the rule of law, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, as well as peaceful resolution of disputes in the Indo-Pacific region. Its meeting is held continuously every year. China and Russia do not support it. China calls it an extension of NATO, but Russia’s response to QUAD is not too bad because Russia knows that India is a sovereign nation, and he knows where his interest lies. India is trying to strike a balance between Russia and the US. After the invasion of Ukraine, there is panic in the world. There is also speculation that China can also invade Taiwan at any time. China considers the South China Sea its own. He catches illegal fish there and keeps aircraft and navy ships roaming all over the South China Sea. That is why some provisions on illegal fishing were made at this meeting of QUAD. China is the most aggressive country and economy in the world. The US seeks India’s help to suppress its aggressive and expansionist thinking. That is why the United States of America considers India a strong strategic and defence partner and says, “We recognise that India is a like-minded partner and leader in South Asia and the Indian Ocean, active in and connected to Southeast Asia"¹⁰.More than 50% of global trade passes through the Indo-Pacific, which produces over 62% of global GDP¹¹. That is why it is very important for India to hold the Indo-Pacific well and not let it fall into the hands of China.

Security

At present, the development and construction of international relations are of great importance in world politics. India-China relations are one of the most complex on the Asian continent. Today, China has become the second-largest economic and strategic power in the world. But a strong and empowered India can present a challenge to Chinese supremacy. China is the only country in the world whose borders are connected with the most countries. It has had disputes with all the countries regarding the border. China has made an agreement on the disputed border line for its convenience. At present, the unresolved border dispute between India and China continues to hinder relations. India’s borders meet with two Chinese territories. One border joins Aksai Chin's Xinjiang autonomous region, and the other is in Tibet's autonomous region. There are nine disputed areas between two countries. Among them, Aksai Chin and Twang are prominent.

There is no doubt that India and China are the two fastest-growing powers in the world. Along with this, India’s challenges are also increasing. China’s expansionist thinking is a threat to India. China uses historical facts as per its convenience. On the one hand, while ignoring the historical facts and evidence, China has given a statement, bypassing the claim of Indian sovereignty over Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, that China’s investment in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is justified, referring to the 1963 border settlement between China and Pakistan that was illegally taken. On the other hand, the South China Sea is registering a protest against India’s investment there by calling it a disputed area¹².

After the 2014 parliamentary election, New Delhi signalled to the international community, including powerful neighbouring countries, that the time had come to take India seriously. In this series, apart from hosting many important leaders in Delhi in the last year, the Prime Minister also visited about one and a half dozen countries, indicating that a new energy was also being seen in India-China relations. But the infiltration from the Chinese side continues. Among these, there were many clashes between the Chinese and Indian armies. Including the Dokalam dispute and the Galwan river valley dispute, in which 20 Indian soldiers were martyred. International media claimed that more than 40 Chinese soldiers were killed¹³. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that the relationship between India and China is going through an “extremely difficult phase” after what Beijing has done at the border and emphasised that the Asian century will not happen if the two neighbours cannot join hands. China wants to surround India to increase its supremacy, which is only possible through a string of pearls. This is a strategy developed by China to build a network of commercial and military bases and ports in several countries. This strategy has been deployed by China to protect its commercial interests as a major part of its trade passes through such areas as the Straight of Hormuz, the Strait of Malacca, and the Lombok Strait. To maintain its presence, China keeps sending reconnaissance aircraft to the Indian Ocean and investing heavily in small island countries. In the Indian Ocean, like the Maldives, and through its debt trap policy, China lures the strategically located nations around India to borrow infrastructural loans. Once the nations are indebted, China presses them to support its geostrategic interests. In a counter-action, India has started working on the strategy of a “string of pearls". The strategy aims to expand its naval base and also improve relations with strategically placed countries, including Singapore, Indonesia, Oman, the Seychelles, Iran, Mongolia, Japan, Vietnam, and central Asian countries. The way India has kept Russia and the USA balanced after the Russia-Ukraine war is commendable, and it shows how much India’s importance has increased in international relations. Now it remains to be seen how much India’s changing strategy affects China.

1. Ministry of external affairs china_october_2017.pdf

2. htttp://in.china-embossy.org/chn(2019-10-17)23:40

3. https://doi.org/10.4000/chinaperspectives . 2853

4. 'China remains top trade partner of india, not US' ,outlook, 31 may 2022

5. “Vedanta picks Gujarat for $20 billion, India's largest semiconductor foray”, mint, 12 Sep 2022, 6. 6. Hindustan Times, Oct 3, 2022,

7. Ministry of External Affairs, Indo-Pacific Division Briefs 7 Feb. 2020.

8. Hindustan times,“US-led Indo-pacific strategy is a play to create division”

9. The print,“Pakistan army’s separate special force will protect CPEC, 19 May,2019

10. Business Standard, US Indo-Pacific Strategy to Back India’s Rise, 12 Feb. 2022

11. A Complete Run-Down of the IPEF, the Wire, 27 May 2022

12. China to oppose India-Vietnam oil deal within the disputed South China Sea, The Economic Times, Sept. 16, 2014

13. China,India to commence withdrawal of forces from shared border, TASS 10 February 2021