China - Taiwan - India

India could have been a deterrent to China but for incompetence of leadership from 1947 to date & lack of public interest/knowledge in geopolitics. There is more expertise in theatrics rather than anything of substance among our leaders. Defense Minister tieing Rakhi to Chinese soldiers & Chinese making Shaheeds of 40 Indian soldiers or making Chinese leader sit on a swing in Sabarmati are the high points of Indian disfunctional diplomacy. That is why not only historically but even now India is seen as a soft target, very easy to trifle with. 

China on the other hand rose from the ashes of civil war, Japanese occupation, atrocities, broken infrastructure & ruined cities to fight the US in the Korean war from 1950-53 & challenged India from the early 1950s. Today it ranks as an industrial, economic, technological & military superpower.

There is a tendency here to ascribe China's rise to dictatorial communism. May be so to an extent but not entirely. Otherwise countries ruled by tinpot dictators in Africa & Latin America and monarchies of middle east would have been superpowers.

This note is not for eulogising China but to see what Indians can learn from that country, once weak, destitute & bullied by other hegemons, not too long ago.

Bellicose China is a reality. How India will deal with the problem remains to be seen given assymetry of power and competence of leaders. While grouping like QUAD may give some comfort, it would mean very little if push comes to a shove, particularly for the weakling in that alliance.

What happens to Taiwan will decide the fate of many countries in the region. 

Current behaviour of China closely resembles that of Imperial Japan of 1925 to 45, that brought much misery to the region and a terrible disaster to own citizens.

 

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