When the Army Chief of ostensibly the world’s largest ground force speaks, the world listens. And when the nation in question is seeking to project itself as a responsible global power even as it is surrounded by adversaries who seem intent on scuttling its rise, it is even more important that the words are carefully chosen and articulated. Friends, adversaries and those sitting on the fence carefully calibrate their responses to the subtle messages that words are intended to send. Those armies and their leaders that don’t take their speech seriously are destined not to be taken seriously themselves. In today’s day and age, information and its proper articulation is a source of power that can either diminish an army and the nation or can yield dividends in shaping an army’s intent and that nation’s destiny.
And so it is with great disappointment that India heard its Army Chief’s comments on the recent developments on the India-China border. Last week, clashes took place between Indian and Chinese troops along the LAC – one incident took place in the Naku La sector in Sikkim and the other one in a contested area near Pangong Tso, a lake in Ladakh. The 3,488 km Sino-Indian border is one of the longest undemarcated borders in the world and remains heavily contested. This is not the first time Indian and Chinese soldiers have engaged each other along the border, nor will it be the last. The nature of the boundary is such that “temporary and short duration face-offs” between the armies of both nations is common. And as Indian infrastructure and capabilities increase on its side of the border and Indian Army’s patrolling becomes more effective, more such clashes will become commonplace.
As a nation, it is absolutely vital that we don’t make these scuffles the centrepoint of our China engagement. For India, managing China is its biggest strategic challenge and the larger picture should not be lost sight of. It is a difficult relationship and a carefully calibrated approach is needed. It was for this reason that after the 73-day Doklam stand-off between India and China along the Sikkim border in 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the Wuhan initiative to stabilise a relationship that was seemingly getting out of control.
But when it comes to the Indian Army, its role essentially remains one of managing the border effectively and enhancing Indian deterrence abilities vis-a-vis Indian adversaries as well as conveying to both Indian domestic public and international interlocutors its form resolve to manage Chinese shenanigans. The Indian Army Chief’s statement on recent India-China skirmishes is quite striking in that it fails to do either.
In his statement, Army Chief General M M Naravane, has made two rather curious points. One pertained to the causes of the clashes which he attributed to “aggressive behaviour by both sides” leading to troop injuries. And the other was his assessment that the scuffles between Indian and Chinese soldiers are “neither co-related nor do they have any connection with other global or local activities.”
These are extraordinary submissions by an Indian army chief at a number of levels. First, they seem to give an impression that we are keen to absolve China of its aggressive policy along the LAC. By underling aggressive behaviour by both sides, the Army chief seems to be blaming his own soldiers for these tensions. Even if this is accurate, was this needed to be part of a public statement by the head of the Indian Army?
Second, why are we so keen to speak on behalf of the Chinese? When the Army chief suggests that these scuffles have nothing to do with other global activities, the question arises how would an Indian Army Chief purport to know the Chinese game plan? There is a global concern about aggressive military moves China has made in the last two months from the South China Sea to Taiwan and Japan. And Indian Army Chief seems to know with certain degree of conviction that India-China border tussle has nothing to do with this larger military posturing by the Chinese. Again, it may very well be the case that India-China border tussle has logic of its own, but an Indian Army Chief’s job is not to explain Chinese actions to Indian public.
China’s response to the scuffle has, of course, been that India should “refrain from making any complicating move.” A simple statement that delivers the message to everyone while we in India do our bit to defend Chinese actions.
There is, of course, a possibility that we are misreading the statement and that a more benign assessment can be made. When the statement talks of the lack of any connection with other global or local activities, it might be merely talking about the Covid-19 pandemic and the larger global scenario. In that case, the army chief’s statement has been extremely poorly drafted and conveys a sense that the Indian military lacks a seriousness of purpose. And that in itself is rather troubling because if China can’t guarantee a seriousness of purpose for the Indian military, then what will?
For the chief of Indian Army, poor drafting can no longer be an excuse as his statements reflect upon India’s resolve to take on the biggest strategic challenge we face – China. India expects better from its military leadership and it deserves better.
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Professor Harsh V. Pant is Vice President – Studies and Foreign Policy at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. He is a Professor of International Relations ...
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