China-India border issue

Japanese: 中印国境問題 - ちゅういんこっきょうもんだい

The border demarcation issue between India and China, which share a border of over 3,000 km, remains unresolved. India adheres to the border of the territory ceded by its former colonial master, the United Kingdom, while China claims the customary border along the southern side of the Himalayan mountain range. A military clash occurred between October and December 1962, leading to a border dispute. China also occupied eastern Kashmir, which India claims as its territory, and diplomatic relations were effectively severed. After that, China strengthened its relationship with Pakistan, and relations between China and India remained strained. However, since Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's visit to China in 1988, the relationship has gradually improved. In the Kargil conflict in 1999, in which India and Pakistan clashed in the Kashmir region, China took a non-intervention stance. At the Sino-Indian summit in June 2003, India recognized the Tibet Autonomous Region as Chinese territory, and China agreed to resume trade via the state of Sikkim. The improvement in India-Pakistan relations since 2004 has also had a positive impact on Sino-Indian relations, and when Premier Wen Jiabao visited India in April 2005, he signed the "Political Framework and Guidelines for the Resolution of the Sino-Indian Border Issue." For the first time, China recognized "Sikkim as a state of India." In July 2006, the border between Sikkim and the Tibet Autonomous Region was opened for the first time in 44 years. The now-opened Nathu La Pass is located at an altitude of 4,545m and has been a trading post on the southern route of the Silk Road since ancient times. One of the reasons for the improvement in relations is the increased economic exchange between the two countries, with trade between the two countries approaching $20 billion per year. There are high hopes for an expansion of trade via Nathu La, but there are still many points where the border has not been demarcated.

(Yukifumi Takeuchi, Asahi Shimbun reporter / 2007)

Source : "Chiezo" published by Asahi Shimbun Publications Co., Ltd. About Chiezo

Japanese:

3000km余り隣接するインドと中国の間で未解決になっている国境の画定問題。インドは旧宗主国の英国から譲渡された領土の境界線を原則とし、中国はヒマラヤ山系の南側に沿う慣習上の境界線を主張している。1962年10〜12月には軍事衝突が起き、国境紛争となった。中国はインドが領土と主張するカシミール東部も占拠し、事実上の国交断絶に発展した。その後、中国はパキスタンとの関係を強化、中印間は険悪な関係が続いた。しかし、88年のラジブ・ガンジー首相の訪中以来、徐々に改善。99年にインドとパキスタンがカシミール地方で衝突したカルギル紛争では、中国は不介入の姿勢をとった。2003年6月の中印首脳会談では、インドがチベット自治区を中国領と認め、中国がシッキム州経由の貿易再開に合意した。04年以降の印パ関係の改善も、中印関係に好影響を与え、05年4月に訪印した温家宝首相は、「中印国境問題解決のための政治枠組みと指針」に調印。中国は初めて「シッキム州はインドの州」と認めた。06年7月には、シッキム州とチベット自治区の間が44年ぶりに開放された。開放されたナトゥラ峠は標高4545mの高地で、古来、シルクロード南ルートの交易拠点だった。関係改善の背景には、両国間の貿易が年200億ドルに迫る経済交流の活発化もある。ナトゥラ経由の貿易拡大にも期待がかかるが、なお国境が画定しない地点も多い。

(竹内幸史朝日新聞記者／ 2007年)

出典　(株)朝日新聞出版発行「知恵蔵」知恵蔵について　情報

<<: Zhuyin alphabet - Chuinjibo (English spelling) Zhù yīn zì mǔ

>>: Intermediate period - Intermediate period