Indian Defence Review

What a paradox, the very day China was vetoing Indian proposal in UN Sanctions committee composed of five permanent members and ten temporary members for sanction against Pakistan for the release of 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Zakir-ur-Rehman Lakhvi the operational head of Pakistan based jihadi organisation Lashkar-e-Toiba (L-e-T), the jihadis carried out a terror attack in the troubled Xinxiang province of China in which 18 people died.

Needless to say China has thrown the gauntlet openly in blind support of its more than a fair weather friend Pakistan against not only India but four other permanent members including US and Russia of the UN Security Council who were in favour of this sanction. So now it is for India to wake up from its stupor of Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai and plan its counter strategy.

The recent Indian proposal of UN Sanction against Pakistan is based on the UN Resolution 1267 in which UN has declared L-e-t as a terror organisation and Pakistan is duty bound to cease all accounts of this organisation as also show no mercy to its operatives specially lakhvi the mastermind of Mumbai attack whom Pakistan released in April this year.

By helping out Pakistan with its veto China has made mockery of the bilateral anti terror cooperation pact which it has signed with India during the recent visit of Prime Minister Modi to China and the trilateral anti terror cooperation pact signed with India and Russia earlier. China has made it clear by this gesture that it will support Pakistani policy of propagating state sponsored jihad to achieve its devious aims especially against India at any cost. This veto by China will further embolden Pakistan to carry out its proxy war against India unfettered.

This plays against Indian national interests because while from Pakistan side the no consequence jihadis basically cannon fodder for Pakistani Army get killed but in India our trained soldiers get martyred. This asymmetrical war cannot be allowed to be carried on to entity. This is the second time that China has bailed out Pakistan on terror. Earlier it was for Sayed Salahuddin the head of the Pakistan based united jihad council terror organisation.

It is China which gave nuclear bomb technology to Pakistan in eighties to prop it up against India and keep India occupied in South Asia only. Any new missile India develops China supplies the counter to Pakistan. China is also the main arms supplier to Pakistan.

In other words China has invested so much in Pakistan to keep India in check that it cannot now draw back even if it wants to. In addition China’s resource rich Muslim majority Xinxiang province is teeming with jihadis who want independence from China. China expects Pakistan to tame them. In return Pakistan has illegally handed over 5000 sq km Shaksgam Valley in Pakistan occupied Kashmir to China through which China has developed the Karakorum highway linking Pakistan with China.

Pakistan has also handed over the Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea to China on lease for 40 years. China is investing 56 billion dollars in Pakistan to link Gwadar port with the Karakorum pass with rail, road and oil pipe line a distance of 3000 km mostly in Pakistani province of Baluchistan.

All this has not happened overnight. This China-Pakistan nexus against India has been developing over two decades. Till China was building its resources it kept the 4500 km long Indo-China disputed border quiet making India go to sleep. We continued our focus on Pakistan disregarding the threat from China and the developing China-Pakistan nexus.

Today we are gradually waking up when already surrounded by both China and Pakistan on our eastern and western borders. Now China in the garb of providing security to its workers in POK have placed almost a division strong military force in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. It has already occupied 40000 sq km Indian area in ladakh known as Aksai-Chin in 1962 Indo-China war and is claiming 90000 sq km of area in Arunachal Pradesh.

China in 1960 has accepted the 2000 km long McMahon line drawn on watershed principle by the British as official border with Myanmar but is refusing to accept this very McMahon line on a 4500 km long border with India. China kept this disputed border with India dormant till it was developing its infrastructure in Tibet. Now having developed the capacity of being able to bring 30 divisions against India in the time of war it has activated this border also with routine incursions.

Thanks to clueless Indian politicians and equally clueless babus of MOD and Foreign ministry who advise our politicians without taking military into loop now we are in dire situation facing two front war scenario with an armed forces equipped with obsolete weapons. How clueless our politicians are on matters military is borne out by the recent statement of new Indian defence minister Manohar Parrikar that Army’s value in the country has gone down because we have not fought any war for last forty years. What he does not understand is that countries keep strong armed forces not to fight war but dissuade other countries on misadventure with us.

The basic principal of war diplomacy is not actually going to war but the threat of going to war. All this happens in India because our netas do not take strategic advice from military. Till date there is no single window military advisor to defence minister or the prime minister.

Another fact which Indian establishment knows but keeps it under wraps is the fact that China is actively abetting insurgency in the North-East against India supplying latest arms and intelligence to insurgents and trying to bring these various insurgent groups under one umbrella.

Truth is that Indian political establishment is so afraid of annoying China that it has been using soft power of appeasement of China which China takes as our weakness. What Indian political establishment and the babus advising them do not understand that Himalayan ranges on whose forbidding heights lies our 4500 km long boundary with China can only be crossed by its 62 passes.

The 60 of these passes are held by us so even the 30 divisions of China will not be able to dent our defences on these heights and we with our mountain divisions are well prepared. All that we need is strong political will and China can be tamed.

It is time India reforms its outdated higher defence management system by implementing already sanctioned but laying in limbo the Chief of defence staff system so that our political class gets one window military advice. We must hasten up our defence infrastructure build up along the Chinese border and go all out to raise our mountain strike corps which the recent Modi government has reduced in strength. No it must be raised in full strength.

We must strengthen our depleting air force and enhance our naval capacity especially of the submarine arm. We must allow entry of Japan, Australia and Singapore in our prestigious Malabar naval ex which we hold with US every year caring too hoots if China will be annoyed. In our military planning we now must work in the two front war scenario. On the pretext of China not granting full autonomy to Tibetans as promised, India should revoke its recognition of Tibet as part of China.

Indian political masters must understand the Indian potential. We are also a major power they must learn to use this power strategically. If the insurgents of North East under influence of China form a government in exile as they want to do the India should also recognise the Tibetan Government in exile. It is time now our political masters learn to face China squarely with 56 inch Chest and stare at China eye to eye. We should learn the lesson from Vietnam and Taiwan.