China deploys 1,000 troops near Sikkim; builds road at Doklam Plateau

Sources said China has been slowly increasing its troop level in the Doklam Plateau

China has maintained a sizeable presence of its troops near the site of the Sikkim border standoff with India and even started building a road on the Doklam Plateau, just 10 km from the location of the last conflict. The Doklam Plateau is claimed by both Beijing and Bhutan as their territory. India backs Bhutan’s claim.

Sources said China has been slowly increasing its troop level in the Doklam Plateau which could further escalate the current situation as India has reasons to be concerned over it.

Thwarted in its last attempt, China has now shifted its unused road construction material North and East of the face-off site. According to NDTV, the road construction workers brought into the area are accompanied by up to 500 soldiers. There is no indication that the soldiers will be permanently based in the area – the Chinese town of Yatung, said the report.

(economy policy)

The Indian Express report, however, said that 1,000 Chinese troops are still present on the plateau
An indication of tension between the two countries due to the presence of Chinese forces in the Chumbi Valley in the Doklam Plateau was also given by Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa on Thursday.
“The two sides are not in a physical face-off as we speak. However, their forces in Chumbi Valley are still deployed and I expect them to withdraw as their exercise in the area gets over,” Dhanoa told reporters. | Readmore…

 

Highlights of BRICS 2017 summit: From naming LeT, JeM to Xi-Modi meet

PM Modi and Xi Jinping will hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the summit on Tuesday

economy news: In what is being seen as a big victory for India's campaign against Pakistan-based terrorist groups, BRICS on Monday named Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in their joint declaration while calling for a comprehensive approach to combating terrorism.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had arrived at the Chinese city of Xiamen on Sunday and attended the BRICS Summit on Monday. According to agency reports, PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the summit on Tuesday.

Here are 10 things to know about India's participation at the BRICS summit

1) Modi lists out 'Ten Noble Commitments' for BRICS: On Tuesday, ahead of his meeting with Xi, PM Modi laid down a roadmap for development as he delivered his statement during the Dialogue of Emerging Markets and Developing Countries at the BRICS summit.

According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of External affairs, speaking at the session, PM Modi said that BRICS leadership for global transformation could be achieved through "Ten Noble Commitments" creating a safer world, creating a greener world, creating an enabled world, creating an inclusive world, creating a digital world, creating a skilled world, creating a healthier world, creating an equitable world, creating a connected world, and creating harmonious world.

PM Modi said that India had recently completed its first voluntary review of sustainable development goals (SDGs). The Prime Minister said that the bedrock of India's development agenda was based on the notion of “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikaas”.

PM Modi also spoke of India's "long tradition" of partnering with "fellow developing countries" and mentioned the South Asia Satellite initiative. He added that India's development partnerships projects were providing water, electricity, roads, healthcare, tele-medicine, and basic infrastructure in dozens of countries.

"Our no strings attached model of cooperation is driven purely by the requirements and priorities of our partner countries," the Prime Minister said.

2) First Modi-Xi meet post Doklam: PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday will hold their first substantive bilateral meeting after the Doklam standoff, which had put ties between the two countries under strain, according to agency reports....read more

BRICS Summit kicks off: Xi, Modi display bonhomie ahead of restricted meet

PM Modi is scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday

 

 

The BRICS Summit began here on Monday with a group photograph of leaders of the five countries and was preceded by a warm handshake between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, who received the leaders of Brazil, Russia, and South Africa ahead of the restricted meeting of the grouping.

Modi was the third leader to reach the convention centre, which is the venue of the 9th BRICS Summit in this Chinese port city, followed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Modi is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Xi on Tuesday.

The Summit will be the first gathering when the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will meet after New Delhi and Beijing decided on "expeditious disengagement" of their border troops in the disputed Dokalam area on August 28 after more than a two month-long standoff between them.

Apart from the restricted meeting, the leaders will participate in the plenary during which they will explore ways to enhance cooperation within the members of the grouping in key areas. They will also deliberate on international issues of significance, including global economy and challenges.

The Summit will end with the adoption of a Xiamen declaration, which will capture the essence of the deliberations and future road map.

Doklam standoff resolution: India's greatest diplomatic victory in decades

Clearest case of game, set and match India in modern history, with lots of aces thrown in for effect

 

The Ministry of External Affairs on Monday announced that following a diplomatic breakthrough Indian troops had begun disengaging at the Doklam border site. Later in the day, reports confirmed that the disengagement exercise had been completed, after a nearly two-and-a-half-month standoff, and the Chinese side had decided to withdraw road-construction equipment from the disputed site.

economy news : The end of the Doklam standoff heralds quite possibly one of India’s most spectacular diplomatic victories in decades, and like any real victory it does not need shouting from rooftops. From beginning to end, the execution of India’s strategy here has been flawless and has achieved what India always wanted – Status Quo Ante -- and a much-needed counter to China’s salami tactics. The magnitude of the victory is only understood when we realise how crushing a personal defeat for Xi Jinping this actually is.

Xi, clearly identified as the mastermind of this Bhutan gambit, had made a number of assumptions, all of which turned out to be erroneous. The first was the belief that India could be punished for its OBOR Lèse-majesté by weaning Bhutan away from India. The logic was, if Bhutan were sufficiently pressured, it would have to open direct talks with China through embassy, and thereby open itself up to OBOR. The opinion in Beijing seems uniform as to the genesis of this particular showdown – it was in fact Xi putting personal pique over national interest. The net result of him personalising policy has been one of the biggest setbacks that China has faced in recent memory.

Unwittingly, Chinese actions have simply added to India’s stature as a mature and responsible status quo power. What had been clear from day one was that China’s options were limited. On the one hand, if China used force it would set a precedent that other countries could also respond in force to China’s land grabs, not to mention destroy several fundamentals of nuclear deterrence. On the other hand, if China did not use force it would be seen as weak – encouraging other neighbours to counter-land/sea grabs. In effect, unwittingly, China landed itself in a 'do-and-be-damned, don’t-do-and-be-damned' quandary. Knowing this full well, India chose to give China a face-saving exit, though it could have just squatted on the disputed land in perpetuity – much like China did. This is not a sign of weakness, this is a sign of confidence....(READ MORE)

Sikkim standoff: China's economic stakes in India is no worry for Beijing

India may hold the promise of a big market for China, but that promise is yet to be fulfilled

 

The sikkim standoff between India and China over a border dispute in the Sikkim region has given rise to speculation over how the latter would respond to the situation. The Chinese leadership has ruled out any talks with India until the Indian troops vacate what it considers to be its territory. In response, the Indian foreign secretary has noted that differences should not become disputes between neighbours.

But the stalemate continues, bringing into sharp focus its impact particularly on China’s economic ties with India. On social media including many WhatsApp groups, a campaign is already on to show how Indians can respond to China by rejecting goods that are produced in that country and sold in India.(economy policy)

It is a campaign charged with nationalistic emotion. But how seriously can such a campaign really impact Chinese exports or investments? To assess that, it is important to look at some numbers on India’s trade with China and the flow of Chinese investments into India.

There is no doubt that Chinese direct investments in India have been rising steadily. From being the 37th largest foreign investor in India in 2011, it has now scaled up to the rank of the 17th largest foreign investor in 2017.

 INDIA-CHINA foreign trade

That appears to be a fast rise in the pecking order, but actually the size of total Chinese investments in India and the annual flows are very little, almost insignificant either as a share of India’s total foreign investment or as a per cent of China’s total investments abroad.

Consider the following numbers. Between April 2000 and March 2017, India received cumulative foreign investments of over $332 billion. Of this, however, China’s share is only $1.63 billion. In 2010-11, China invested only about $2 million in India. That year, India had received total foreign direct investments (FDI) of over $14 billion..

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