Continuing its unending pressure on India over the almost two-month standoff at Dokalam, a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman late Thursday warned that while China had shown high level of restraint so far, even “goodwill has its principles and restraint has its bottom line.”
The “Indian side must give up the illusion of its delaying tactic, as no country should underestimate the Chinese forces’ confidence and capability to safeguard peace and their resolve and willpower to defend national sovereignty, security and development interests,” spokesman Ren Guoqiang said in a statement released by the ministry’s website. Hours earlier, China once again vetoed the US, France and UK-backed proposal to list Pakistani terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed chief and Pathankot terror attack mastermind Masood Azhar as a designated terrorist by the United Nations.
On August 2, the Chinese Foreign Ministry released a 18-page document which cited historical “facts” to justify its claim to the region, insisted that Indian troops had intruded into Chinese territory and demanded they must be withdrawn from the area before any meaningful dialogue could take place.
Unwilling to exacerbate the situation in Doklam or engage in a hectoring match with Beijing, New Delhi has made it clear that diplomacy is its preferred choice.
Bhaskar Roy, a senior intelligence officer who retired after years of work on China, believes that part of the ramped-up rhetoric is due to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s internal compulsions. “This is all tied to their internal politics. Also, keep in mind that even while the harangue from Beijing continues, the Chinese Consul General in Kolkata Ma Zhanwu is singing nice tunes about improving cultural and other exchanges between the two nations,” told Express.