How to play against China

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 How to play against China

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• PLA's ambush: The loss of 20 Indian soldiers in Ladakh's Galwan valley was a shock to the Indian establishment and public. More shocking has been the mutually contradictory statements from various parts of the govt. on such a sensitive matter.
• China's conduct: The trouble with China dates back to the 1950s, and the lack of clarity in decision-makers' minds is due to inability to grasp China's long-term goals. That has been due to lack of investment in manpower focused entirely on China.
• Nehru to Mao: Nehru had the naive hope of friendship with the Chinese, but the "Hindi Chini bhai bhi" mantra failed. Modi invested heavily in Xi Jinping, and that too fell apart. China simply marches on, and India is looking on, perplexed.
• Chess and Wei Qui: Indians may think in chess terms - striking blows, fighting pitched battles and checkmating the opponent. Chinese may use the Wei Qui pattern - occupy empty spaces, surround and capture opposing pieces, use guile and flexibility.
• China's DWPs: Every 2 years or so, since 1995, China has issued Defence White Papers (DWPs) highlighting its national security goals. India has no such parallel process till date. Our response to the Galwan crisis highlights this absence of strategy.
• History of the Chinese empire: The original Chinese system did not recognise equal, sovereign states, but a Chinese Emperor who was above all. The Chinese may be gunning for a world where they are supreme, having replaced the US, and created the "tianxia" (all under heaven kind of unified global system). China is using its economic power to subjugate others to its hegemony.
• From 1962 to 2020: China is using the unsettled LAC (Line of Actual Control) to perhaps repeat the 1962 lesson it gave India, to stop a peer competitor from emerging. So far, in 2020, it has succeeded in confusing India and exposing the weaknesses as they are.
• The mysterious LAC: There's no such border in the world between two big powers that's undecided after decades. The 1993 agreement (Border Peace and Tranquility Agreement) ensured that India-China relationship was "delinked" from the border settlement question. Is it more of a ticking time bomb in Chinese hands? 
• Bitter truth: June-July 2020 may see "disengagement" between troops of India and China, but China won't go back at all from forward positions. So India must have a 3-pronged strategy.
• Indian strategy:

1. Ground level - Reinforce the army, and move forward all along the LAC. Indian Navy must show themselves at the choke points. Build the ammunitions stockpile quickly.
2. Strategic level - Govt. must talk to the highest levels of Chinese establishment. It must try to seek peace for trade, territorial disputes, border-management and security. Put more energy into the Quad, and invite more nations to it.
3. Parliament level - Drop the idea of taking back Aksai Chin (impossible in 21st century conditions) and forcefully settle all pending boundary questions. Then, focus totally on socio-economic development.

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