Francine R. Frankel

Submerged tensions between India and China have pushed to the surface, revealing a
deep and wide strategic rivalry over several security-related issues in the Asia-Pacific
area. The U.S.-India nuclear deal and regular joint naval exercises informed Beijing’s
assessment that U.S.-India friendship was aimed at containing China’s rise. China’s
more aggressive claims to the disputed northern border—a new challenge to India’s sovereignty
over Kashmir—and the entry of Chinese troops and construction workers in the
disputed Gilgit-Baltistan region escalated the conflict. India’s reassessment of China’s
intentions led the Indian military to adopt a two-front war doctrine against potential
simultaneous attacks by Pakistan and China. China’s rivalry with India in the Indian
Ocean area is also displacing New Delhi’s influence in neighboring countries. As China’s
growing strength creates uneasiness in the region, India’s balancing role is welcome within
ASEAN. Its naval presence facilitates comprehensive cooperation with other countries
having tense relations with China, most notably Japan. India’s efforts to outflank China’s
encirclement were boosted after Beijing unexpectedly challenged U.S. naval supremacy
in the South China Sea and the Pacific. The Obama Administration reasserted the big
picture strategic vision of U.S.-India partnership first advanced by the nuclear deal.
Rivalry between China and India in the Indian Ocean, now expanded to China and
the United States in the Pacific, is solidifying an informal coalition of democracies in the
vast Asia-Pacific area.