India’s economic tit-for-tat against recent Chinese military forays has included a ban imposed last Wednesday on 118 Chinese-origin apps including the popular game PUBG, Baidu, etc. This follows continued incursions by the Chinese Army on the South Bank of Ladakh’s Pangong Lake. This is the second round of bans.
The first was on June 29, when popular apps such as TikTok and WeChat were suspended. These bans have been ostensibly imposed to protect the sovereignty and integrity of the country as the government fears vital data is being transferred via the cyber highway to Chinese servers.
However, cyber security is likely not the real reason for the ban. These popular gaming and social apps have been the rage among millions, and had been operational in India for quite some time. If they are indeed a cyber security threat, the government should not have allowed them in the first place or banned them long ago.
Clearly, these bans seem to be forms of retaliation against the new aggressive Chinese policy. But how efficacious are they? Former National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon has rightly pointed out that by banning a few apps, India is hardly likely to generate the kind of business pressure that will force the Chinese government to reverse its aggressive line.
China under President Xi Jinping represents a nation with an aggressive foreign policy. Beijing has been extending its naval frontiers by laying claim on the entire South China Sea, and militarising many islands and reefs in the region. China has also resorted to hostage diplomacy with Canada and Australia. More recently, the Chinese have been pushing into Indian territory.
New Delhi should take advantage of Beijing’s engagement on many fronts and persist with the tough line on the ground in Ladakh. It should also hit back and retrieve lost ground with regional neighbours including Nepal and Bangladesh. An increase in trade and commerce with these nations will prevent them from becoming part of the China Axis.