India, China: Game is on

India has done well publicly not to overlook the August 15 dust-up between Indian and Chinese troops in the Pangong Lake area in Ladakh on August 15, and officially accept that an “incident” had indeed occurred.

This acknowledgment may be seen as an alert sounded to the country, as well as internationally, that unilateral Chinese actions on the disputed border have not remained confined to the Doklam area at the tri-junction of India, China and Bhutan, thousands of kilometres to the east of Ladakh. This suggests that the state of Indian preparations against creeping Chinese expansionism must be an effort that encompasses all elements of state power-military, diplomatic and economic. India also rightly cautioned on Friday that episodes such as the one in Ladakh do not contribute to peace and tranquillity on the (disputed) border. China signed an agreement with India in 1993 to maintain peace and tranquillity on the border.

Mercifully, the troops of the nuclear neighbours did not resort to firearms and confined themselves to scuffles and stone-throwing at one another in Ladakh, perhaps conscious that any escalation can have ramifications. However, the subsequent meeting of border patrol management teams revealed an icy attitude on China’s part. India and China cranked up diplomacy to convince the world of their respective positions on the Doklam “standoff”, and the Indian effort has borne fruit. The Japanese ambassador in New Delhi recently urged China not to “unilaterally” seek to alter borders if they are disputed. Beijing is not amused. India’s acknowledgment of the Ladakh “incident” came on the same day as the Japanese statement. China must know the game is on.