Cold Peace: China–India Rivalry in the Twenty-First Century

The twenty-first century is likely to witness Asia’s two largest civilizations, China and India, join the United States in an elite club of global superpowers. By some economic indicators, the two Asian giants are already the second and third largest economies in the world, and they are developing world-class militaries to complement that economic clout. While Beijing and Delhi have spent the past half-century free from armed conflict and enjoy cordial diplomatic relations, elements of rivalry have shadowed the relationship since the two countries went to war in 1962 over their disputed Himalayan border. In the twenty-first century, that rivalry has evolved in unpredictable ways, advancing in some arenas and retreating in the face of growing cooperation in others. Cold Peace: China–India Rivalry in the Twenty-First Century updates and deepens our understanding of the China–India relationship by unraveling the complex layers of the contemporary China–India rivalry. This book draws from over 100 interviews with subject-matter experts, government officials, and military officers in India, China, and the United States between November 2011 and July 2013. It also benefits from rare and unique field research at the disputed China–India border in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh; at the contested town of Tawang in the Himalayas; at Dharamsala, the seat of the Tibetan Government in Exile; at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; and on Hainan Island, which administers China’s South China Sea territories. With 14 chapters dedicated to issue-specific studies, including Threat Perceptions in China-India Relations, the border dispute, Tawang, Tibet, the Dalai Lama succession issue, maritime security, and the role of the United States and Pakistan in Sino–Indian relations, Cold Peace provides a comprehensive examination of the evolution of China–India relations.

Table of Contents:
Foreword Section 1: Threat Perceptions 1 A Civil Rivalry Section 2: Territory 2 Defining the Dispute 3 Return to Rivalry 4 The Elusive Settlement Section 3: Tawang and Tibet 5 Tawang 6 Tibet 7 The Rise of the Sikyong and the Succession of the Dalai Lama Section 4: Third Parties 8 The United States in China-India Relations 9 Sweeter than Honey: Pakistan in China-India Relations Section 5: Turf 10 China and the Indian Ocean: A Quest for Energy Security 11 Securing India’s Ocean: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands 12 India Looking East: Freedom of Navigation and the South China Sea Section 6: Trade 13 Trade and the Global Commons 14 Summary of Conclusions Bibliography

About the Author :
Jeff M. Smith is director of South Asia Programs and Kraemer Strategy Fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council.

Review :
Cold Peace takes us on a fascinating tour through the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean and from Tibet to Pakistan to deconstruct the complex layers of the Sino-Indian relationship. In describing the rivalrous cooperation between China and India, Jeff M. Smith has crafted the rare book that is valuable to the veteran policymaker and accessible to the interested reader. Smith’s analysis sheds new light on the complex dynamics underpinning the turbulent China-India relationship. Part history book, part policy tome, Cold Peace delivers. Drawing upon numerous interviews, as well as other material, Jeff M. Smith demonstrates why the interactions among India, Pakistan and China, are, and will continue to be, of vital concern to the U.S. policy makers for years to come. Cold Peace offers a comprehensive survey of the geostrategic interaction between China and India. Smith looks into little-studied arenas of rivalry such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Based on extensive interviews with Indian and Chinese analysts, this book gives new insight into the views and policies of both Beijing and New Delhi. A solid, insightful, first rate work.