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

The term "Asian century" was first coined in 1985 and gained popularity in the 1990s, but the China-India relationship has been highly rancorous since then, with trade spats and border skirmishing. This book offers a comprehensive analysis of India and China's comparative strategic capabilities.

Format: Hardback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 13 February 2025
Publisher: C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd

The term "Asian century" was first coined by the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1985 during discussions about the Asian economic leap forward. In 1988, diplomats and the media began using the term, and it gained further prominence after the successful Deng Xiaoping-Rajiv Gandhi summit in Beijing that December. Vappala Balachandran, under Prime Minister Gandhi's direct instructions, led a small team of officials for over 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, led to optimistic visions of a China-India Century of Cooperation, where both powers could compete with the US and EU in terms of trade and military capacity. However, this did not materialize, and instead, the China-India relationship has been characterized by rancorous relations, marked by trade spats and border skirmishes between the People's Liberation Army and the Indian Army. New Delhi has increasingly turned towards the US in an attempt to checkmate Beijing's pursuit of global military and trade dominance. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of India and China's comparative strategic capabilities, drawing on the author's first-hand engagement with and research into the topics discussed. It is important to note that the opinions expressed in this book are personal and do not represent the views of the Government of India.

Weight: 652g
Dimension: 149 x 224 x 39 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781805260622