ASSESSMENTS
Why the Belt and Road Fuels India's Fears of Encirclement
Apr 19, 2019 | 11:37 GMT
(CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP/Getty Images)
Highlights
- China will continue to expand its Belt and Road Initiative in South Asia because the peripheral nations of the subcontinent feel a need to counterbalance India's influence as they seek funding for development.
- India's opposition to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will ensure that New Delhi remains the main holdout against the Belt and Road in Asia.
- Relations between India and China are calmer since their standoff over the Doklam Plateau in 2017, but their rivalry will continue apace given their competing aims in the region.