China has lodged a diplomatic protest with India after the latter hosted a Taiwanese parliamentary delegation earlier this month. China urged India to show its ‘commitment’ to its widely criticized “One China Policy”. Chinese state media said “India has long wanted to use the Taiwan question, The South China Sea and The Dalai Lama as bargaining chips in dealing with China”
This is indeed an interesting development as even Donald Trump, in a recent call to Xi Xing ping, accepted the One China Policy. This needs to be seen in connection with China’s blatant refusal to designate Masood Azhar as a terrorist at the UN.
Chinese state run media “Global Times” threatened India that it must not play with fire and called India a “provocateur”. It also said that India will only suffer losses if it tries to play Tibet, Taiwan and South East China Sea cards. It also questioned the timing of such a visit of an official delegation. It cautioned India to not be fooled by Taiwan’s new government which is hoping to use India against China.
China expects India and the world to respect “One China” policy and not hurt what it calls its core interests namely Tibet, Taiwan and South East China Sea which of late has become a hot theater for a show off between USA and China. Well, for all the lame claims of peaceful rise, China has consistently performed when it comes to showing signs of a ‘Rising Responsible Power’.
It comes after China blocked India’s efforts to designate Masood Azhar as a terrorist in United Nations. It has to understand that other countries also have ‘core interests’ just as much as China does.
China’s recent responses to India’s test of Agni V missile which is widely believed to be a deterrent against China and now this objection to a visit of female parliamentarians delegation to India shows that China is yet not ready to claim a Super Power status. A so called super power shall not be irked by such visits which do take place every now and them between two countries which believe in democracy.
India has brushed aside any such objections. The spokesperson for India’s external affairs ministry said that such visits by Taiwanese delegation to India have happened in past as well for various reasons and purposes that include business and religion as well.
China shall not read too much into such trivial things and must learn to behave like a responsible power and be insecure by such insignificant visits of parliamentarians between two democratic countries.
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