The State-run Chinese newspaper, Global Times, has blamed India for 1962 India-China war.

New Delhi/Dec 13/Nationalturk- The State-run Chinese English newspaper, Global Times, has blamed India for the 1962 India-China war and said the war was detrimental for the two countries.

“India supported the Dalai Lama’s uprising. After India provided shelter for  Dalai Lama in exile in 1959,China had to handle the boundary issue with India from a strategic perspective. The Chinese government has always been in favor of solving the issue through negotiations,” read an opinion peace in Global Times, written by wrote Liu Zongyi,  research fellow of the Center for South Asia Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies.

The write-up said thenChina’s premier Zhou Enlai flew toNew Delhiin April 1960 to negotiate the border issue with then Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, but he refused negotiations. “The attitude of Nehru was surely influenced byIndia’s domestic politics: Nehru and his ruling party were attacked on the border issue by opposition parties.”

The opinion piece said China was forced into a counterattack in the 1962 war. “It was not only believed by regional specialists but also by strategists like Kissinger. After the first military clash between China and India in the border area in 1959, the Chinese military was ordered to retreat 20 kilometers to avoid an escalation of the conflict. This came while India initiated a forward policy of sending troops and border patrols into disputed areas. Since China’s policy to stop India’s further encroachment failed, a lightning strike to force India to the negotiating table was the last resort.China’s passive counterattack was aimed at ending the harassments from Indian troops and bilateral confrontation.”

It said the war was detrimental to both India and China. “Even though China did make India negotiate,India since then has taken China as its biggest threat and taken a militaristic stance. China not only failed to get back its lost territory but created a new rival. This was unexpected.”

‘Indian military leaders, strategists not in favour of peace’

“In the 21st century themed around peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit, the leadership of China repeatedly emphasized that China and India will never be at war again. If the border problem cannot be solved, it could be temporarily put aside.  However, it seems India’s military leaders and strategists are not doing so. Their reflection is allegedly confined to their country’s military weaknesses, such as outdated equipment, misconduct, and poor logistics. If they continue deliberately ignoring the fundamental reason that caused the war, the China-India border problem will never be solved,” it read.

The opinion lauded  some Indian scholars, who according to it, have begun objective research and studies on the border war, calling for a change in attitude from some officials. “Hopefully,India’s leaders can focus on improving people’s livelihoods instead of eyeing bigger defense budgets,” it concluded.

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Faiz Ahmad / NationalTurk India  News

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