“Visa Row Won't Affect Sino-India Military Ties: Chinese Experts”

Visa Row Won't Affect Sino-India Military Ties: Chinese Experts

Posted: 30 Aug 2010 02:28 AM PDT

Visa Row Won't Affect Sino-India Military Ties: Chinese Experts

43 minutes ago

(RTTNews) - Chinese experts on Monday sought to downplay the visa row over Beijing's refusal to permit a top Indian Army officer to visit that country, saying military ties between the two countries are "strong and powerful" and will not be "compromised" by such incidents.

Upset over China's refusal to allow the visit of Lt.-Gen. B. S. Jaswal, the Indian Army's General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, New Delhi retaliated by refusing permission to two Chinese defense officials to attend a course at India's National Defense College. It also canceled a subsequent visit by Indian military officials to China.

Two Chinese official English dailies on Monday carried reports about the denial of visa with comments attributed to experts attached to official think tanks.

"The relations and trust between the two countries are very powerful," Rong Ying, Deputy Director of the China Institute of International Studies, told the China Daily.

Slamming the Indian media for "sensationalizing" certain issues between the two countries contrary to facts, he called on the Indian Press to be more objective and sensible when reporting Sino-India relations, especially those concerning disputes.

He said such reports also reflected a misunderstanding of "the complexity of Sino-Indian relations."

Separately, Li Daguang, a military specialist with the University of National Defense, told the Daily that "the defense exchanges between China and India will not be stalled and so far as I know, the exchanges between the two countries are ongoing and deepening."

Also, Fu Xiaoqiang, a professor on South Asia affairs at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times that he did not think the latest visa row between the two countries would have a big impact on bilateral relations.

He said border and military issues between India and China were quite sensitive, and both sides should handle them carefully.

Pointing out that the rise of China and India will definitely bring some clashes and that it will take some time for the two countries to establish full trust toward each other, Fu said
dialogue rather than confrontation that could improve mutual understanding.

India summoned China's Ambassador on Friday to protest Beijing's refusal of a visa to Gen. Jaswal, a three-star Indian General who was to have led a high-level defense exchange team to Beijing this month.

Indian media said New Delhi had put off all its military exchanges with China in protest until the visa issue was resolved. They also said the reason for China turning down the visa was that Gen. Jaswal "controlled" Jammu & Kashmir, a state that China maintains is disputed and claims in part.

On Saturday, India's Defense Minister A.K. Antony said "ties with China will continue," and now China's Ministry of Defense has also denied it has halted military exchanges with India.

China has not halted defense exchanges with India and has received no word that New Delhi has stopped military exchanges between the two countries, China's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

"China takes seriously developing military ties with India, and we are confident that both sides will stay focused on broader picture of bilateral ties between our two countries, acting in a spirit of consultation and unity to promote healthy development of military ties," it said.

However, there was no reaction from the Chinese Foreign Ministry yet.

China-India ties are shrouded in suspicion and mistrust, mainly due to unresolved border disputes in India's northwest and northeast, the short war in 1962 and the presence of Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in India that China resents.

Additionally, China is also a close ally of Pakistan, India's arch rival, propping up the impoverished Islamic nation with investment, industry know-how and weapons, including missile technology.

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International Studies

Monday, August 30, 2010