Four months of violent face-offs, increasing points of military conflict, intensifying military build-up, banning of 177 Chinese apps, check on Chinese investments by India, and an inconclusive meeting between the defence ministers of India and China on September 4 in Moscow. Is an India-China war inevitable? The question is uppermost in many minds.
In statements issued by the two sides, Chinese defence minister General Wei Fenghe, blamed India for the current tension, stating “China’s territory cannot be lost”. India’s stand, articulated by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, maintained that “Indian troops had always taken a very responsible approach towards border management”. Fundamental to the current impasse is the India-China border being managed based on an un-demarcated line of actual control, with a long-standing unresolved border. China’s military adventurism against India runs parallel to Xi Jinping’s meteoric growth to becoming the paramount power in China. On November 15, 2012, Xi Jinping was appointed general...