Reseña del libro "India and China in the Emerging Dynamics of East Asia (en Inglés)"
Though considerable research literature is now available on China?India relations, most of it still follows a conventional narrative, viewing the relationship through the narrow conflictual prism limited to South Asia than in the new, larger perspective, especially in the context of emerging East Asian dynamics. This book offers comprehensive analyses of some of these issues in papers addressing two broad themes. One, significant trends in the relationship between China and India on a range of issues, including economic development models, their military strategies, and the boundary dispute; and two, how others are responding to the rise of India and China and their impact on East Asia. Together, the chapters constitute a comprehensive study on both China?India relations and their concurrent rise, including a variety of perspectives and methodologies. Written by some of the top experts on the subject from India, China, Japan, and Taiwan and covering a broad range of issues, the book will generate considerable interest in understanding this relatively neglected dimension of today?s East Asia.Even until the late 1990s, most scholars hardly paid attention to the likely rivalry or competition between India and China in East Asia. Although opinions had been divided, China?s march to dominate the region was nearly unchallenged with the accretion of huge economic and military power. With the US deeply embroiled in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Japan mired in economic stagnation, and India still trying to wriggle out of decades of red tape, political lethargy and a reticence to look beyond its immediate vicinity, it was surmised that East Asia would have no choice but to accept the new reality of a China-led regional hierarchy. Which means, to follow the historical trend, a new order would come about, replacing the older one.But things began to change, with India unfolding the second phase of its Look East policy in the early 2000s with renewed vigour and commitment once it became clear that it did not have too many choices to better its economic prospects and play a commensurate role. By the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century, Washington had announced its determination that it was ?back in Asia?, which was quickly followed by the launch of the ?pivot? or ?rebalance? strategy. Not to be left behind, Japan, under the conservative governments especially of Taro Aso and Shinzo Abe (who has amazingly staged a successful comeback to the helm), is determined to unveil a new self that is not only willing to redefine its regional role, but also embark on a bold new security policy aimed at greater strategic autonomy. New Delhi has also stepped up its involvement by not simply looking, but actively engaging the East through a comprehensive, multifaceted policy covering economic, political and strategic aspects. Amid this, the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) too has upped the ante by forcefully pushing across a robust role for itself and for the regional multilateralism led by it. To compound the security environment further, the disputes over islands that had long remained dormant in the East and South China Seas have emerged as highly contentious, threatening to disrupt regional peace and stability. A major issue that analysts and policy makers alike are trying to grapple with is the rise of China and its increasingly assertive attitude both politically and militarily.As a result, East Asian security is becoming all the more complex, even while the regional scene is characterised by an unprecedented economic dynamism. Indeed, it is extraordinary that virtually the entire East Asian region is on the rise. This phenomenon undoubtedly will have huge implications not merely for the region but for the rest of the world and, hence, the stakes are simply too high. Yet, the current transitory phase that the region is experiencing is fraught with serious problems; meanwhile, uncertainties remain in the nature of the future regional security order.Against this backdrop, one issue that has come into sharper focus is the role of India and China in East Asia. Analysts have termed their relationship either as one of competition?for natural resources, for investments, and for political influence and thus strategic space?or as rivalry?with roots in the 1962 war, which was followed by bitter acrimony and matching military build-up. Whether it is competition or rivalry, there is no denying that for the first time in recent history, India and China are meeting face to face with each other in East Asia, and this is likely to have considerable impact on the rest of the region and there is no question that their policies will influence a great deal in the shaping of the regional order.A cursory look at scholarly analyses even a decade ago shows that they tended to focus on the India?Pakistan rivalry since the two nations had declared themselves as nuclear weapon states after conducting tests in 1998. China watchers, on the other hand, were more interested in the rising giant?s interactions with its East Asian neighbours as well as the US. Book-length studies on China?India relations that looked beyond either the border dispute or China?s support to Pakistan were rare in Western academia. Strategic communities? interest in China?India-related topics also tended to be sporadic and reactive. The existing literature either dealt with technical issues?such as the impact of the 1962 war or border negotiations?or attempted to ask what role an external power such as the US plays either in the aftermath of the Cold War or post-9/11. However, the situation has since changed fundamentally in the last decade or so even as both China and India aspire to spread their influence across the vast Indo-Pacific region.Considerable research literature is now available on China?India relations, but most of it still follows a conventional perspective, seeing the relationship in the narrow conflictual prism limited to South Asia than in the new dynamic, larger perspective especially in the context of emerging East Asian dynamics.This volume tries to offer comprehensive analyses of some of these issues. The papers included here are based on deliberations that took place in an international conference that was held in Taiwan in December 2011, co-hosted by the Graduate Institute of International Politics, National Chung Hsing University, Taiwan, and the Centre for South, Central and Southeast Asian & Southwest Pacific Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. Two broad themes were identified in the Taiwan conference. One, significant trends in the relationship between China and India on a range of issues, including economic development models, their military strategies, and the boundary dispute, and two, how others are looking at the rise of India and China?s rise and their impact on East Asia. Together, the chapters constitute a comprehensive study on both China?India relations and their concurrent rise comprising various perspectives and methodologies.Written by some of the top experts on the subject from India, China, Japan, Taiwan and the U.S. covering a wide canvass of issues, the proposed volume is anticipated to generate considerable interest in understanding this dimension of East Asia that has been relatively neglected.
