New Delhi: With ongoing talks in eastern Ladakh for the military forces of India and China to “disengage and de-escalate”, the state-owned Chinese media raked up the Northeast insurgency issue on Monday by linking it to the Taiwan question.
An opinion article in the government mouthpiece “Global Times” questioning celebration of Taiwan's National Day in certain Indian media platforms, said: “If Chinese media publicly support the insurgencies in Northeast India, or publish content in favour of Indian pro-separatist forces, how will New Delhi react? India's response won't be milder than that of China.”
The allusion is significant in the backdrop of reports that senior leaders of several insurgent outfits from Northeast, especially from the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) and the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), are camping in Chinese territory with the expectation of Chinese help to realize their aim of separation from India.
Frustration is already rife in the NSCN camp because of protracted negotiations with the government which has continued for the last 23 years without any fruitful resolution.
Moreover, it is a documented fact that many insurgencies in Northeast India including that of the Nagas were initially aided by the Chinese state.
The Chinese assertion in the media, which is vetted by Beijing and is taken as the official Communist Party stand, can also be construed as an indirect threat of collaborating with the Northeast India insurgents, something that the Indian security establishment is very apprehensive of.
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Warning that “China won't allow other countries to break its bottom line”, the article also points out that India accepts the ‘One China’ policy which is the foundation of China-India diplomatic relations and any other stand would not be acceptable.
On October 7, three days before Taiwan celebrated its national day on October 10, the Chinese embassy in New Delhi in a communique laid down that Indian media should “stick to Indian government’s position on Taiwan question” and not to refer to Taiwan as a “country (nation)” or “Republic of China” or the leader of China’s Taiwan region as “President”.
The article also stated that “US' support is unreliable” if New Delhi believes that it has won the support of the US and other Western countries.
On Sunday, commenting on the already tense relationship between the two Asian giants, US national security adviser Robert O’Brien in a possible attempt to navigate the ongoing India-China talks said there is no point in talking to China. “The time has come to accept that dialogue and agreements will not persuade or compel the People’s Republic of China to change.”
