Question

Explain the relationship between India and China

Answer 1

• Among India’s neighbours, China is the most populous and most powerful country, India and China have had trade relations since ancient times.
• Even before Independence, India’s relation with China has been a harmonious one.
• Indian National Congress had also expressed its full support to the National Liberation Movement in China.
• India gained Independence in 1947 and the Chinese Communist Party came to power in 1949.
• Jawaharlal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India and Zhou Enlai, the then Premier of China, signed the Panchsheel Agreement in 1954 which laid down the five principles of peaceful co-existence.
• Despite the signing of the Panchsheel, Indo-China relations soon started to deteriorate at the end of 1950s when China occupied Tibet.
• There were minor armed clashes between both the countries, but soon after, on 20 October 1962 a full scale war broke out over the issue of international border claims between the two countries.
• The visits of the Indian President in 1992 and the Prime Minister in 1993 to China focussed on improving the relations between the two nations.
• An agreement was signed in September 1993 to solve boundary disputes through dialogues.
• However, China has continuously tried to illegally occupy Indian territory in Eastern Laddakh and Arunachal Pradesh.