According to papers presented at a security meeting, Chinese activities and influence in India’s surrounding areas have been increasing with the intention of limiting and occupying India’s ability to address the resulting challenges. The papers, submitted by Indian Police Service officers at the conference titled, “Chinese influence in the neighbourhood and implications for India”, suggest that by offering large amounts of money in the form of loans for development projects in Southeast and South Asia, China aims to decrease India’s influence in the Indian Ocean region and force resolution of issues on China’s terms. They suggest that China has become increasingly focused on its South Asian periphery, moving beyond commercial and development engagements to more extensive political and security ones.
The papers presented at the annual three-day conference, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and approximately 350 leading police officers of the country, stated that China has been effectively utilizing tools such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), infrastructure-related investments in India’s neighbouring countries through easy loans, hot borders and the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to constrain and occupy India.
The papers concluded that over the last 25 years, Chinese economic and military growth has been significant, and Chinese activities and influence in India’s surrounding areas have grown proportionately. These actions are intended to limit and occupy India’s ability to address the resulting challenges, force resolution of issues on China’s terms, control India’s growth, and allow China to achieve its goal of becoming not only the preeminent power in Asia, but a global superpower. An analyst stated that China is highly ambitious about achieving its regional power status in the Indian Ocean region. To do so, Beijing wants to contain India, which is the only threat before China in this region.
Source: Financial Express
