November 7, 2004 ☼ Foreign Affairs

That depends on which side you are

India’s Defence Ministry perceives China as a source of strategic threat. Well, it should.

But India’s collective perception of China need not necessarily be congruent with the Defence Ministry’s.

In the polite discourse of public statements and press commentaries, Chinese officials focus on the upside: shared global interests, complementary trade and the salutary effects of brisk competition between friendly neighbours. While these arguments all make some sense, they do not tell the whole story. In India, China can only see a potential rival—if not now, then soon—for natural resources, foreign capital and, above all, export markets.

Pei Yuanying, a former Chinese ambassador to India, argues that such competition need not be a problem. “The crucial point”, he says, “is to see whether this competition is virtuous or vicious.” [The Economist]

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