NEW DELHI, June 22:
If a war does break out between India and China, an ‘exited’ Pakistan could jump into the fray as well with the ‘tacit’ support of Nepal-hence, India should develop a multi-pronged strategy to counter the ‘ caucus.’
This was observed here on Monday by experts, belonging to Defence and other major fields, amid reports of External Affairs Minister level meeting between India and China on Tuesday to discuss the Ladakh situation.
” Pakistani guns and morter opened up on Kupwara soon after the Galwan valley killings and most Indian strategists and politicians tend to see the military threat from Pakistan in isolation,” the experts said.
They said there is a power differential between India and the China-Pakistan axis, and to address this, India cannot afford to be isolated and should get into closer security alignments with the US and other major Western powers , including Russia.
Mentioning about Nepal’s ‘encouragement’ to any such ”misadventure,” they pointed out that residents of Uttarakhand villages bordering Nepal that can catch the frequency of radio stations in the neighbouring country are being treated to a sudden surfeit of anti-India songs that call for return of areas in “Uttarakhand that have been included in Kathmandu’s new map.
Incidentally, these songs claim that not only the Uttarakhand areas, but even Shillong and Darjeeling were part of Nepal.
” The songs also say that they will not just take away Kalapani, but also drink water in Nalapani (a seasonal river in Dehradun),” the experts said.
They said, in the short term, India should strengthen whatever positions it controls on the LAC based on a realistic assessment and prepare for any Chinese adventurism.
” It should also launch a strong diplomatic campaign in world capitals, highlighting Beijing’s aggressive and interventionist positions in territorial disputes with other Nations, which threaten world peace,” the experts maintained.
Advocating need to bridge the power asymmetry with China by expanding the capacities, they commented ” India’s second generation of reforms failed to take off under both UPA and current NDA governments, although there are some promising signs following the Covid crisis.”
The experts said, “Can the country just do what has been known for a long time needs to be done, but has fallen through due to lack of political will?”
This, they said, would not only bridge the power gap with China, but would also make India a more prosperous and respected Nation. (UNI)
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel