Revisiting China’s Territorial Claims on Arunachal

Sujit Dutta

PRESENTLY ON LIEN Joined IDSA 1987 Expertise China’s Foreign Policy and Diplomacy; State and Politics in 20th Century China; Asian Security issues; India-China Relations; International Relations Theory Education PhD in… Continue reading Revisiting China’s Territorial Claims on Arunachal read more

In recent years, China has again publicly revived its territorial claims over India’s northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh. However, by insisting on these claims, China is making a settlement of the territorial issue virtually impossible and seriously misperceiving public opinion trends in India. China has failed to appreciate that if Arunachal is claimed to be the southern part of Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), India cannot accept Tibet to be within China. India’s formal position on Tibet articulated in 1954 and 2003 is therefore a tentative and unilateral diplomatic offer that can only be sustained and the circle completed once China recognizes Arunachal as part of India.