For the first time in decades, shots have been fired between China and India along the Line of Actual Control. As India grapples with the twin domestic crises of COVID and the economy, it simultaneously must manage a complex diplomatic and defense engagement with the Chinese.

This week on this show, Milan sits down with the Carnegie Endowment’s Ashley J. Tellis, one of the world’s foremost experts on Indian foreign policy. Milan and Ashley discuss recent fighting along India’s Chinese border, the motivations animating Chinese strategic calculations, the implications for U.S. foreign policy, and growing international concerns about the character of India’s domestic regime.

Notes:

1. Ashley J. Tellis, “Hustling in the Himalayas: The Sino-Indian Border Confrontation”
2. Ashley J. Tellis, “India’s Path to the Big Leagues”
3. Carnegie India webinar, “The Sino-Indian Border: Escalation & Disengagement”
4. Sushant Singh, “Can India Transcend its Two-Front Challenge?”
5. Seema Sirohi, “Pre-Election Bhai-Bhai”