Geopolitics

Border Defence Cooperation Agreement Kaput!
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Issue Net Edition | Date : 18 Dec , 2013

If the ruling coterie was looking for brownie points for the coming elections by hyping that signing of the BDCA with China had put at rest all border problems till eventual peaceful resolution, China has lost no time in reciprocating with a tight slap on the face. That the coterie would play it down, there is absolutely no doubt. They would have kept the abduction of Indian nationals by the Chinese from Chumar under the wraps but alas the cat came out from the bag once the Chinese eventually did release them. What went on during the flag meeting (s) / parleys is not difficult to guess; which side obdurate and which one pleading. The advantage of controlling the media is that the spin doctors can successfully mislead you.

Exchange of information implies next time India wants to make a landing at DBO, prior intimation is to be given to China.

Look at the current media blitz about India’s unprecedented stand against the US with regard to the India-US diplomatic row over the arrest of Indian Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade in New York. Our media is blaring “US shown its place” and the like. Agreed measures taken are warranted but then why did Salman Khurshid himself meet the US congressional delegation. If the foreign minister is entertaining the delegation, others not meeting them are of little consequence.

Why a complete boycott could not be affected unless it was to sound them quietly not to take seriously some temporary muscle flexing being undertaken to save face.

This is quite possible considering the same minister instead of denouncing the US NSA snooping on our missions abroad under PRISM, palmed it off the issue saying, “This is not scrutiny and access to actual messages. It is only computer analysis of patterns of calls and emails that are being sent. It is not actually snooping specifically on content of anybody’s message or conversation. ….”.  The irony is that while our foreign minister was hell bent to please the US, a Federal District Court judge in the US has ruled that the NSA’s PRISM probably violates the Constitution and is an infringement of privacy; challenging legality of the PRISM program. It is precisely such pussyfooting that we are not taken seriously, and perhaps the very reason that our diplomats have in the past and will continue to face similar humiliation.

…how does one define “areas where there is no common understanding of the line of actual control”? Do we have common understanding in Arunachal? Not as per China.

But let us get back to the BDCA. Following the Chinese declaration of ADIZ in the East China Sea to emasculate Japanese claims to Senkaku Islands, there is speculation that China may announce more ADIZs in South China Sea as well. This should actually be expected because China has already sounded that she intends making more announcements. The bigger fear being talked about is that China may declare similar ADIZ along the LAC with India. But does China need to do that in the first place? Having hyped landing of the C-17 Globemaster III at DBO, we have gone and signed the DBO with China. One of the provision of the BDCA is that both sides will exchange information about aircraft, demolitions etc along the line of actual control in the India-China border areas. Any guesses why we have not attempted a similar landing again? Now have a look as to what we have signed:

  • Exchange of information implies next time India wants to make a landing at DBO, prior intimation is to be given to China. No, no, it is not seeking permission, is what government will say. Now imagine the scene when prior information is given and China says such landing is in violation of their perception of the LAC. Under the current dispensation, there will be only one outcome; such a landing was never planned, so where is the question of such a communication having taken place?
  • Connected to the above, who will exchange this information with whom and at what level? Will the forward commanders do it? What if the Chinese counterpart says ‘wait’ till you get a response from my higher authority and never comes back? Is the DGMO going to ring up his counterpart to say “hey buddy, the foreign secretary is going to take an aerial survey over Depsang tomorrow” and the response is that Depsang is Chinese territory?
  • The term ‘border areas’ is as vague in the BDCA as the BDCA itself. To what depth does the term border areas relate to? Obviously in Arunachal Pradesh, the Chinese would like to relate it to ‘South Tibet’ but what about other areas along the LAC.
…do we realize what we have gone and signed. But come to think of it, BDCA or no BDCA, give the state of our paralysis, Chinese will keep kicking anyway.
  • But flying aircraft is a big event compared to use of demolitions for development of infrastructure, which is an imperative in the type of terrain along the LAC with China. Having developed infrastructure comprehensively on her side, China has most adroitly tricked us in signing these stupid stipulations that affect us and only us. So, we are to inform China every time we are doing blasting to construct or improve a road and again to what depth since the LAC itself has different perceptions and China has not given any maps of her perception of the LAC.
  • The biggest blunder of course is the article that saying that the two sides agree that they shall not follow or tail patrols of the other side in areas where there is no common understanding of the line of actual control in the India-China border areas. So we can expect more and more abductions from areas like Chumar. Then how does one define “areas where there is no common understanding of the line of actual control”? Do we have common understanding in Arunachal? Not as per China. So the rules of the game are very simple. Chinese can come to any depth, stay as long, we are not to shadow. The question of doing it in reverse does need not be discussed at all, period.

Now surely, the BDCA that we signed was not written in Mandarin and even if it was, our NSA was conversant with it. But do we realize what we have gone and signed. But come to think of it, BDCA or no BDCA, give the state of our paralysis, Chinese will keep kicking anyway. After all the BDCA was signed just to ignore small incidents (read small acne on the face) like Chumar or intrusions in Depsang. Former diplomats are amazed at what we have gone and signed and the complete leeway it gives to China to violate the border the manner in which she wants to.

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Discussing the same issue recently, two former ambassadors  were wondering that when the average Chinaman is five feet six inches tall, same as the average Indian, what then is the problem, till someone reminded them that the average height of our ruling hierarchy unfortunately is only two feet besides being afflicted with utopia and chronic vote-bank calculus.

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The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the Indian Defence Review.

About the Author

Lt Gen Prakash Katoch

is Former Director General of Information Systems and A Special Forces Veteran, Indian Army.

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4 thoughts on “Border Defence Cooperation Agreement Kaput!

  1. All these minor agreements with china will not matter if we are commanding a strong force enough to give a bloody nose to China in the near future. Decades back like India when China was just out of the cacoon it signed an agreement with British India which delineated Arunachal pradesh and Ladakh and Leh as part of British India. Now that China has grown into a robust miliatry force, its actions are tantamount to annuling those agreements. The moral of the story is, as long as China is NOT having any settlements or infrastructure build up in the disputed areas, we should continue to concentrate on strengthening our armed forces such that the BDCA agreements of today will be used as wiping tissues by our armed forces on the border.

  2. The stance of the Army must be serious against China at the border. It is well known that China does not recognize the Indo-China border. And no matter what anyone thinks, I believe that China does not recognize any section of the border with India. In fact, the number of claims that China has been making have been increasing with its military build up.

    In a CCTV (Chinese media) news video on youtube, I saw that an Indian defense analyst was talking to the news anchor about INS Vikramaditya or INS Vikrant (I don’t exactly remember). On screen, I saw that the map of India was such that – the whole of J&K and Arunachal Pradesh were not included in the Indian border! It was like India was missing its head (J&K) and Arunachal Pradesh. I was surprised that the Indian analyst did not protest against it – may be he could not see the map from the studio where he was sitting.

    Moving on – according to its current behavior, China will, in future, more fervently lay claim to the union of India because it does not recognize internal state borders. It will lay claim state by state. If it does not recognize the international borders, now will it ever recognize Indian state borders!

    Therefore, going soft on China at the international borders is tantamount to putting the entire nation at risk.

    I spoke with a Chinese student in the US who is a staunch communist, and he said that the CCP is aggressively working towards world domination and communizing the entire world. I initially laughed it off, but then I see the these the manifestation these days. If unchecked, it will only get bigger.

  3. Why have a NSA, who does not understand the implications of what he signs. Insofar as China is concerned, it is necessary to have a representative preferably a former Army Commander to do the talking. The present incumbent reminds one of another Menon who blundered in 1962.

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