Divergence, Similarity and Symmetry in Sino-Indian Threat Perceptions

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  "authors": [
    "Lora Saalman"
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  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
    "Carnegie China"
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  "collections": [
    "China’s Foreign Relations"
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  "regions": [
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  "topics": [
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In The Media

Carnegie China

Divergence, Similarity and Symmetry in Sino-Indian Threat Perceptions

A close comparison of the security perceptions of Chinese and Indian strategic, scientific, and academic experts reveals that the Sino-Indian security dilemma cannot be simply viewed through the prism of the border anymore.

By Lora Saalman

Published on Jul 7, 2011

Source: Journal of International Affairs

China and India remain locked in a stagnant embrace when it comes to the most intractable of security dilemmas: the Sino-Indian border issue. A closer look at Chinese and Indian strategic, scientific and academic experts' security perceptions vis-à-vis one another reveals that there is much more to the Sino-Indian security dynamic than meets the eye. Chinese and Indian strategic analysts hold divergent interests when evaluating each other's military modernization, the former preoccupied with India's naval development and the latter with China's army. Technical analysts in each country share a similar level of interest in the other's aviation and aerospace programs. Scholars exhibit a strong, if not symmetrical, level of focus on the other country's nuclear strategy and status. Using this tripartite discourse as a baseline, this essay provides both a quantitative and qualitative analysis of each group's perceptions to better understand Sino-Indian security relations and to propose measures within each arena to enhance mutual understanding. It shows that the Sino-Indian security dilemma cannot be simply viewed through the prism of the border anymore.

About the Author

Lora Saalman

Former Nonresident Associate, Nuclear Policy Program

Saalman was a nonresident associate in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Her research focuses on China’s nuclear and strategic policies toward India, Russia, and arms control.

Recent Work

Paper
Balancing Chinese Interests on North Korea and Iran
- Lora Saalman
In The Media
Why Beijing Stands by Pyongyang
- Lora Saalman

Security Arms Control South Asia India East Asia China

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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