20.01.12 Menas Borders China, India agree on border mechanism

The Indian and Chinese governments have signed an interim agreement to manage their joint border.

The two sides' special representatives on the issue, Shiv Shankar Menon and Dai Bingguo, agreed on a new mechanism to coordinate their responses along their vast and poorly-demarcated Himalayan border.

The mechanism “will not discuss resolution of the Boundary Question”, a politically sensitive issue which neither side has much political interest in resolving at the moment. Instead, it will provide a way to strengthen cooperation between Indian and Chinese military forces in the area, and reduce the chances of tension or clashes.

There have been a number of small-scale incidents over the past few years, particularly since the exact boundary line is not agreed on. The far eastern segment of the border, as well as the area around Kashmir, is still disputed by both India and China.

Under the new agreement, diplomatic and military officials will meet occasionally throughout the year to discuss key issues and identify any points of tension. By moving away from attempting to solve the border dispute itself, the new mechanism depoliticises the issue and allows for confidence-building measures.

The arrangement is not a long-term fix, however. At some point, New Delhi and Beijing will have to sit down and go through the formal process of settling their border, which will become an increasingly tense issue as both begin to position themselves for hegemony in East Asia.

Bingguo was nonetheless optimistic about the new arrangement, declaring that the two sides “can work miracles” together.

Sources: The Hindi, Wall Street Journal