China’s talk of mutual trust deceptive

China has objected to Indo-US joint military exercise being held in Uttarakhand. Beijing's argument is that its venue is close to the LAC and it doesn't serve the mutual trust between China and India.

New Delhi, Dec 02: China's objection to the joint India-United States military exercise, 'Yudha Abhyas,' currently being held in Uttarakhand's Auli is strange. Observers say such exercises are normal in the contemporary world. India and the United States conduct this exercise annually. This is aimed at exchanging "best practices, tactics, techniques and procedures between the armies of the two nations." Last year, the Indo-US joint army exercise was carried out at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Alaska.

In the Auli exercise, US Army soldiers of 2nd Brigade of the 11th Airborne Division and Indian Army soldiers from the ASSAM Regiment are taking part. During the training, the armies will be focusing on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. They will be practising to launch swift and coordinated relief efforts in the wake of any natural calamity.

Beijing's main argument against the current India-US joint exercise is that its venue/theatre is close to the border with China. It is just 100 km away from the Line of Actual Control between India and China. This violates the spirit of the agreements India and China had signed in 1993 and 1996. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has asserted, "It does not serve the mutual trust between China and India."

China's talk of mutual trust with India is deceptive. Experience shows China has hardly cared to build it. The ties between the two nations had started developing since former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's visit to Beijing in 1988 and then Chinese President Jiang Zemin in the nineties. They have, however, deteriorated fast during current Chinese President Xi Jinping's rule.

In May 2020, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) moved a large number of troops to the disputed areas in the LAC in eastern Ladakh in May 2020. Beijing has violated its agreements with India, according to which the boundary question between the two nations is to be resolved through peaceful and friendly consultations with each other.

According to a report, China today is investing heavily in upgrading military infrastructure along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). It is building new highways and connecting roads, air strips constructing new habitats and settlements near the Line of Actual Control and have deployed heavy weaponry, including missile regiments, on their side. It is seeking to further improve the connectivity of the Chinese military positions on the LAC with the hinterland. Beijing is also recruiting Tibetans and basing them right at border posts along with the mainland Han troops. It wants to use the original inhabitants of the region to man the highly difficult terrain tough for the mainland Chinese troops.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

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