Is China Scared of India’s Leadership at WHO?

On May 23rd India took over the leadership of executive board of WHO.Dr Harsh Vardhan took over as Chairman of executive board at World Health Organisation. Since then China has been trying to pressurize India by using it age old tactics in order to stop India from initiating any action against it in WHO. China has been accused of hiding the details of Coronavirus in the beginning and WHO has been accused of favoring it. India along with 100 other nations have come together to initiate an independent probe against China for its mis-information about Coronavirus.

Tensions are increasing across the India-China border as many activities have been witnessed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Incidents have occurred in over four different sites. Indian Army Chief General, on 14 May, reported that many incidents took place at Pangong lake in Ladakh, Nakthu La in Sikkim, which resulted in injuries caused due to “aggressive behavior on both sides”.

India and China have overlapping claim lines along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). There has been dispute over the claimed territory along the LAC, and any instigation from one side leads to the other side to ramp up for an encounter. Several protocols have been put in place to avoid such incidents but have not always been followed.

The latest stand-off between the two troops started when India began construction activity near the LAC. India believes the construction was being done in India’s side of the Line of Actual Control. China however, moved its troops in to stop the construction activity. Both the countries have differing views on the LAC and various spots along it. The northern bank of Pangong appears to be in the middle of a dispute as the LAC is not properly demarcated.

Sikkim however found itself in the middle of a territory battle for the first time as the LAC was supposedly agreed around the area. Hence, the new incidents occurring around Sikkim have come as somewhat a shock to India.

Efforts have been made by India in the past to resolve such complications, and arrive at a conclusion. The efforts were rendered futile as India and China could not come to a mutual understanding on LAC around the Western Sector. After this China left the idea saying that it will result in more complications and it will be difficult to acquiesce. 

Many transgressions have been witnessed through the years, due to a lack of a definite sense of the border. Both countries have perceived different boundaries which has led to many major conflicts in the past.

The new incidents continue to flare up tensions across the border. The matter of concern is the troops that have built up at multiple locations along the LAC. India has reportedly mirrored the deployment in areas where the Chinese troops have build-up.

This is not the first-time tensions have flared up at the border. In August 2017, India and China witnessed similar incidents, but eventually withdrew from the stand-off.