India and China at Odds in the Asian Century: A Diplomatic and Strategic History - Hardcover

Balachandran, Vappala

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1805260626 ISBN 13: 9781805260622

Publisher: Hurst, 2025

Synopsis

The term "Asian century" was first coined by the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1985 when discussing the Asian economic leap forward. From 1988, diplomats and the media also started using the term, further to the successful Deng Xiaoping-Rajiv Gandhi summit held that December in Beijing, for which Vappala Balachandran, under Prime Minister Gandhi's express directions, led a small team of officials for more than a year of discreet 'off-line' talks with key Chinese counterparts--separate from the official diplomatic engagement.

The Chinese-Indian thaw, which lasted until 1998, prompted highly optimistic visions of a "China-India Century of Cooperation" enabling both powers to compete with the US and EU in terms of trade and military capacity. None of this happened, and instead the China-India relationship is highly rancorous, punctuated by trade spats and border skirmishing between the People's Liberation Army and the Indian Army. New Delhi has gravitated towards the US in the hope of checkmating an assertive Beijing's pursuit of global military and trade dominance. This book offers a comprehensive analysis of India and China's comparative strategic capabilities, sharing many insights drawn from the author's first-hand engagement with and research into the questions discussed.

The opinions expressed in this book are personal and do not represent those of the Government of India.

About this title

About the Author

Vappala Balachandran is a columnist, former special secretary for the Indian Cabinet Secretariat, and author of four books on Indian security, strategy and intelligence. In 1987 he led a two-member Indian team to revamp the security set-up of an Indian Ocean country, at its president's request. In 1993 and 1994 he headed the Indian interagency intelligence groups for annual dialogue with US agencies on terrorism. In 1995 he organized the first discreet talks between Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao and the chief "rebel" Naga group, paving the way for a ceasefire.

Edition details

• Publisher: Hurst
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1805260626
• ISBN 13: 9781805260622
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288