The games China plays The Statesman 03 Nov 2026
https://epaper.thestatesman.com/reader/4216823/Delhi-The-Statesman/03-11-2026/page/7/2/rw
The games China plays The Statesman 03 Nov 2026
The statement by the ITBP chief, Shatrujeet Kapur, on ongoing standoffs, since July this year, in Asaphila and Taksing in Upper Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh, opened doors for targeting the government on its ties with China. Kapur’s intent was to praise the functioning of newly raised Shaurya Platoons in the ITBP. The fact that these standoffs were ongoing during the visit of Xi Jinping to India in Sept this year, for the BRICS summit, added to discomfort of the ruling dispensation.
Simultaneously, China has been pushing fake narratives and videos seeking to discredit the Indian armed forces and the current government as also cause a divide between the public and the army. Indian army’s fact checking account has been debunking these fake videos. China’s policy of issuing stapled visas to residents of Arunachal continues, which is its way of claiming that people from these regions are not from India.
In the recent past, both India and China, have renamed places in Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing refers to as Zangnan or South Tibet. China releases Mandarin names for select locations in Arunachal which have no link to history or reality as Arunachal was never directly governed by Lhasa. This is being done to add to their narrative as part of their three-warfare strategy. When questioned on it, their spokesperson mentions, ‘It is entirely within China’s sovereignty to standardise names of some places.’
In counter, India released historical names for 27 places and geographical features in Arunachal on its Survey of India maps, to which the Chinese retorted stating the action was ‘illegal, null and void.’ The Chinese response implied it had never expected India to counter them. Not that Beijing’s objections matter to New Delhi. The message from India was clear, it will respond in a similar manner to all Chinese actions. The same is the case with standoffs.
Standoffs have been a regular feature along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Rarely have there been physical clashes. Some have been resolved within a short timeframe, which others have lingered. Patrols from both sides are tasked to monitor select points along their claim lines. As the LAC remains un-demarcated and disputed, claim lines overlap. There are occasions when opposing patrols reach their planned points simultaneously. Also, when intelligence inputs of an opposing patrol entering own claimed area is received, troops move to block them. Both these circumstances lead to standoffs.
Troops from both sides dig in and hold their position, before mutually withdrawing, post discussions. As infrastructure develops and technology is inducted in a big way, standoffs are likely to increase as movement of the adversary is detected in advance and troops move rapidly to block them. It is to prevent infrastructure from being built, which could enhance connectivity, defence preparedness and speed up Indian reactions, that China imposes India specific export restrictions for equipment such as tunnel boring machines, walking excavators and plateau-type wet shotcrete machines, all of which are essential for developing infrastructure in mountainous border regions.
The MEA spokesperson, in a very mature statement over the standoff, mentioned, ‘the situation in the India-China border areas gets disturbed from time to time when Chinese forces diverge from established patrolling patterns.’ He added, ‘Both sides continue to use existing diplomatic and military mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation along the LAC.’ He also reiterated the government’s position which is ‘maintenance of peace and tranquillity in border areas is essential for the overall development of bilateral relations.’
The Chinese, on the other hand, attempted to justify their actions, while blaming India, which is nothing new. The Chinese spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, on being questioned mentioned that the PLA ‘strictly abides by relevant agreements and important understandings between the two countries, conducts routine patrols and management activities in border areas to safeguard territorial sovereignty and border stability.’ If China did so, then such incidents would never occur.
The Global Times, the Chinese government mouthpiece, published an editorial mentioning that the Indian statement was ‘unsubstantiated’ and more for ‘domestic political considerations.’ It also mentioned that both sides ‘should continue to rely on established diplomatic and military communication mechanisms to manage differences.’
The Chinese have always adopted a policy of denial for their actions, while blaming India for any incident. They even hold India responsible for the clash at Galwan, whereas the reverse is true. All standoffs have occurred due to actions by Chinese troops, rarely by Indian patrols. Their fear over India enhancing its infrastructure is such that it bans export of equipment needed for the same. This is the same China which claims it is competing with the US over military power, however fears a rising India.
China is aware of Indian military power, which is being enhanced to counter any future misadventure on their part. It would avoid taking any action which could escalate into an enlarged conflict. It prefers Standoffs, which are localized incidents, well below level of hostilities, aimed at keeping its claim lines alive. Troops though armed do not employ weapons as they are banned under earlier agreements.
Added to its actions on the ground are releasing fake narratives and videos, pushed by a Pak-China nexus and exploited by the anti-government lobby in India. In an era of social media, each incident is blown up as part of psychological operations launched by Chinese handles, generally located outside their mainland with multiple themes.
The most common theme witnessed in every case is loss of territory for India, whereas it has never been so. Intrusions are always temporary. Secondly, the government and armed forces are blamed for failing in their responsibility of ensuring territorial integrity. Thirdly, India’s alliances in the west, mainly with the US, are valueless and finally, China is too powerful to be challenged. In recent days they have added two new subjects, which are Pak-China collusion, especially since their recently concluded joint exercise termed as Karakoram 2026 and Bangladesh’s tilt towards China.
The end result of each standoff, no matter how small, and its accompanied information warfare actions, supports Chinese viewpoints, while the Indian government is questioned on imaginary failures. On the contrary, it is the Indian army which comes out on top, preventing the PLA from gaining any foothold. It is time the government concentrates on educating the common man on Chinese intent, while exposing their fake supporters in India.