China, India against trouble on border: daily

BEIJING - The Sino-Indian border row is real but neither country wants to use “military force”, said a Chinese daily, adding the dispute was not the most urgent item on either country’s agenda”.

The Global Times editorial appeared Thursday, the second day of the Dec 15-17 visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to India.

The editorial said: “The rise of China and India has an inevitable context: a world dominated by the West. No matter whether the two emerging powers like it or not, Western interests will exert profound impact on each of their choices.”

Saying it was “strange that the contention between China and India is especially singled out”, it said: “Contention over their borders is real. However, both countries don’t want to resort to military force on this issue.

“Compared to promoting prosperity, the border disputes are not the most urgent item on either country’s agenda.

“Both countries endeavour to build a strong economy, whereas neither thinks about hegemony in Asia. Both are seeking further modernization and first-class civil livelihood.”

It said that “senseless comparisons” between the two countries was not meaningful.

“The so-called dragon-elephant contention mainly exists at the social level in the two nations, and some impulsive words appear quite ludicrous. Nevertheless, both governments generally hold steady and level-headed attitudes.”

The editorial said India and China “have a similar self-identity: a big developing nation. At times, India claims itself as the biggest democratic nation in the world. But in reality, India’s key international interests are closely related to its former identity.

“The title of `the biggest democratic nation’ looks like a glass of red wine enjoyed together by India and the West. But it doesn’t generate anything substantial that is of India’s national interests.”

It pointed out that due to India’s huge population and “much work left to be done in developing the economy, perhaps India won’t get too drunk to act superior in front of China, because such superiority will delight India much less than it delights the West.

“The dragon-elephant contention is a pseudo-proposition, but a true desire of US and European conservatives. Hopefully both nations will witness a peaceful rise that is good for everyone.”