New Delhi accuses Chinese troops of transgressing into its territory, but Beijing has denied the charge, and even recently demanded the creation of a buffer zone with a width of between 15km and 20km, mostly within Indian territory.
China’s insistence that all is well at the border is fuelling tensions between the two, as it seeks to maintain the status quo there, said experts.
Dr Brandon Yoder, senior lecturer at the Australian National University’s School of Politics and International Relations, said the main reason for the conflicting views is that China holds the “tactical upper hand on the ground in the border region”.
“It is in China’s interest, and China desires a maintenance of that status quo in terms of the distribution of power there, and would like to maintain that leverage,” he told CNA’s Asia First on Thursday (Jun 15).
He said China has every incentive to downplay the conflict, especially with its growing geopolitical rivalry with the United States.
“India, on the other hand, is dissatisfied that China has this leverage in the Himalayan border region, and would like to be able to put deterrent pressure on China, to let China know that it can’t simply continue to make these kinds of incursions to encroach on what India claims as its sovereign territory,” added Dr Yoder.
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