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We should not worry too much about Indian capabilities, both military and
otherwise.' We have the knowledge, the wisdom, the capacity to think this
through and deal with it, if we put our minds to it," Shivshankar Menon,
former national security adviser, former foreign secretary and former
Indian ambassador to China, tells Rediff.com Senior Contributor Sheela
Bhatt in the concluding segment of an exclusive and eloquent four-part
interview.
I can't say. We don't know what China is demanding, we don't know what
the Government of India has said, I mean sadly, we don't know what our
own government has said to the Chinese.
How much?
Nothing is very clear right now so I'd be very careful before jumping to
conclusions.
Once you know about the situation on the border, you then come to broader
conclusions about the relationship going forward.
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I don't think the Chinese quite realise how strongly Indian people feel.
An open democratic society like ours works differently. I don't think they
quite appreciate the influence this has on China policy.
We have been in much more serious situations before, earlier in our history
as a Republic. We have been in much more serious situations.
But by now we should have a much clearer idea of where we are going.
No, we have to be prepared for China trying to take it to the next level, but
then we can handle that.
I don't think we should worry too much about Indian capabilities, both
military and otherwise.
We have the knowledge, the wisdom, the capacity to think this through and
deal with it, if we put our minds to it.
The Chinese have achieved one thing and that is certainly to make relations
with America very popular in India.
Well, that's what US national security strategy has said. That rivalry is the
real threat. They have said so since December 2013.
The rest we'll work with our friends and they will help to strengthen us,
they will help us to deal with the international consequences. All that we
will work with all our friends, we will work with the US who is a partner, a
very close strategic partner.
We'll work with Japan, we'll work with all the other friends that we have.
When the LAC is in question, why is only China able to give India
pain?
You ask the Chinese. They'll tell you the opposite.
See where you have a difference in perception in the LAC, you might think
what you are doing is harmless, but the Chinese will say, 'Oh he's
intruding'.
Right? So if you ask the Chinese, it's a mirror image of what you are saying
from the Indian point of view that why do the Chinese do all this, what is
this, why do they get away with all this?
They will say why are the Indian intruding regularly? Why are they sitting
on our territory? And if you read what they say, they say it regularly.
You have to accept the basic fact that for 40 years we managed a disputed,
un-demarcated, undefined border which remained a peaceful region
between us.
That is serious. That is why this is serious and different from the times
before.
China blamed Nehru for his forward policy for the 1962 War.
That is an excuse they keep giving year after year, but this time
there was no provocation particularly for the Galwan Valley.
But the fact is, they did attack in '62, and this time, they did attack our
personnel.
Every version that we have says so. So, for me, that's not the issue here.
The question is how do the two countries deal with the situation and go
forward. And that, frankly, we don't know, yet.
I'm sure India can deal with this. That I'm confident of.
STAND-OFF IN LADAKH
Feature Production: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com