Post-2015 India-Nepal Relations and China Factor in South Asia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12797/Politeja.19.2022.76.14Keywords:
South Asia, India, China, Nepal, Neighbourhood Policy, Foreign PolicyAbstract
The India-Nepal relationship has always been regarded as a distinctive one because of strong cultural, political, and civil ties. The unannounced economic blockade imposed by India in 2015, however, takes the India-Nepal relationship to a cult. The misplayed neighbourhood policy of India after 2015 moved Nepal towards its northern neighbour. Likewise, for India, Nepal is equally very strategic to China as one of the signatories and the core component of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’. Thus, the Indian-Nepal partnership bitterness and multilevel Chinese participation in Nepal is the same scenario for India’s overall neighbourhood policy misconduct and China’s growth in South Asia. This study examines the major events that occurred in Nepal after 2015, encouraging distancing relationships with India and closeness to China.
Downloads
References
Adhikari R., Chaulagain Y., Dhakal T., Subedi S., From a Buffer towards a Bridge Nepal’s New Foreign Policy Agenda, Kathmandu 2013.
Amagain S., “Regional Hegemony in South Asia: A Study of Nepal-India Relation”, Norwegian University of Life Science, 2016, at http://hdl.handle.net/11250/2435232.
Arora V., “Just How Popular Is India in South Asia Really?”, The Diplomat, 22 March 2016, at https://thediplomat.com/2016/03/just-how-popular-is-india-in-south-asia-really/.
Baral B., “India Should Realise China Has Nothing to Do with Nepal’s Stand on Lipulekh”, The Wire, 19 May 2020, at https://thewire.in/south-asia/nepal-india-lipulekh-china. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3126/jps.v19i0.26696
Baral L.K., Pyakurel U.P., Nepal-India Open Borders: Problems and Prospects, New Delhi 2015.
Basu D., Srivastava P., “COVID-19 in South Asia: India Lags Behind Pak on Stimulus, Lanka on Overall Performance”, The Wire, 19 May 2020, at https://thewire.in/politicaleconomy/covid-19-in-south-asia-india-lags-behind-pak-on-stimulus-lanka-on-overallperformance.
BBC, “How the Blockade is Affecting Nepal”, BBC News, 2015, at https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35041366.
Behera A., Changing Perception in a Globalizing World: With Special Reference to India, New Delhi 2013.
Behuria A.K., Pattanaik S.S., Gupta A., “Does India Have a Neighbourhood Policy?”, Strategic Analysis, vol. 36, no. 2 (2012), https://doi.org/10.1080/09700161.2012.646440. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09700161.2012.646440
Bell T., “Analysis: Blockade Politics in Nepal”, Aljazeera, 9 October 2015, at https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/10/09/analysis-blockade-politics-in-nepal/.
Bergsten C.F., Cary E. (eds.), The China Balance Sheet in 2007 and Beyond, Washington D.C. 2007.
Bhasin M., “India’s Role in South Asia – Perceived Hegemony or Reluctant Leadership?”, Indian
Foreign Affairs Journal, vol. 3, no. 4 (2008), at https://www.globalindiafoundation.org/MadhaviBhasin.pdf.
Bhattacharjee K., “Nepal Passes Amendment on New Map”, The Hindu, 14 June 2020, at https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/nepal-parliaments-lower-house-unanimously-passes-bill-to-redraw-political-map/article31821242.ece.
Bhattarai K., “China’s Growing Political Clout in Nepal”, The Diplomat, 22 May 2020, at https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/chinas-growing-political-clout-in-nepal/.
Bose T., “India, China and the Neighbourhood in South Asia”, The India Forum, 7 August 2020, at https://www.theindiaforum.in/letters/india-china-and-neighbourhood-south-asia.
Budhathoki A., “Nepal Cranks up Anti-India Politics with Cross-border Marriage Bill”, Nikkei Asia, 30 June 2020, at https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Nepalcranks-up-anti-India-politics-with-cross-border-marriage-bill.
Destradi S., “India as a Democracy Promoter? New Delhi’s Involvement in Nepal’s Return to Democracy”, Democratization, vol. 19, no. 2 (2011), https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2011.584452. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2011.584452
Dixit K., “India and Nepal Must End Their Border Dispute”, Time, 17 November 2015, at https://time.com/4115801/nepal-india-border-blockade-madhesh/.
Ethirajan A., “India and China: How Nepal’s New Map is Stirring Old Rivalries”, BBC News, 10 June 2020, at https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-52967452.
Freitas G.D., “State Visit to China Triggers a Bumper Crop of Nepalese BRI Projects” (para.1-2), Belt and Road, 13 February 2018, at https://beltandroad.hktdc.com/en/insights/state-visit-china-triggers-bumper-crop-nepalese-bri-projects.
Ganguly S., “India Is Paying the Price for Neglecting its Neighbors”, Foreign Policy, 23 June 2020, at https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/06/23/india-china-south-asia-relations/.
Gurung A., Shakya T., “Was Nepal a Soft Power Victory for China?”, Foreign Policy, 1 May 2015, at https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/05/01/nepal-china-earthquake-aid-taiwan-power/.
IDEA, Nepal’s Constitution Building Process: 2006-2015 Progress, Challenges, and Contributions of International Community, Stockholm 2015, at https://www.idea.int/sites/default/files/publications/nepals-constitution-building-process-2006-2015.pdf.
Jaiswal P., “Caught in the India-China Rivalry: Policy Options for Nepal”, IPCS, 1 March 2014, at http://www.ipcs.org/issue_select.php?recNo=556.
Jha H.B., “Addressing the Kalapani Issue between Nepal and India”, Observer Research Foundation, 20 December 2019, at http://www.orfonline.org/expertspeak/addressing-the-kalapani-issue-between-nepal-and-india-59377/.
Karki B., “Why is India Eager to Talk Borders with China but Not Nepal?”, The Wire, 16 June 2020, at https://thewire.in/south-asia/india-china-nepal-border.
Lama N., “Re-negotiating the Mahakali Treaty in the Changing Geopolitics of Nepal”, International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, vol. 9, no. 1 (2019), https://doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.9.01.2019.p8554. DOI: https://doi.org/10.29322/IJSRP.9.01.2019.p8554
Mearsheimer J.J., Tragedy of Great Power Politics, New York 2001.
Mishra R., “India’s Role in Nepal’s Maoist Insurgency”, Asian Survey, vol. 44, no. 5 (2004), https://doi.org/10.1525/as.2004.44.5.627. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/as.2004.44.5.627
Mohan G., “Nepal’s New Citizenship Proposal to Impact India-Nepal ‘roti-beti’ Ties”, India Today, 22 June 2020, at https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/nepal-citizenship-proposalimpact-india-nepal-roti-beti-ties-1691480-2020-06-22.
Mukhopadhaya G., Kurian N., “India Must Take the Lead in South Asia”, Hindustan Times, 25 August 2020, at https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/india-must-take-the-leadin-south-asia-analysis/story-pr5Pp9DIWAHdXI8T154UBM.html.
Muni S., “Lipu Lekh: The Past, Present and Future of the Nepal-India Stand-off ”, Hindustan Times, 22 May 2020, at https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/lipu-lekh-the-past-present-and-future-of-the-nepal-india-stand-off-analysis/story-wy3OvSD0G0nkxtGQTOIp2I.html.
Muni S.D., “India’s Nepal Policy”, in D.M. Malone, C.R. Mohan, S. Raghavan (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of India’s Foreign Policy, Oxford 2015, https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198743538.013.29. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198743538.013.29
Murthy P., “The Gujral Doctrine and Beyond”, Strategic Analysis, vol. 23, no. 4 (1999), https://doi.org/10.1080/09700169908455072. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09700169908455072
Murthy P., “India and Nepal: Security and Economic Dimensions”, Strategic Analysis, vol. 23, no. 9 (1999), https://doi.org/10.1080/09700169908455141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09700169908455141
Ranjan A., India in South Asia: Challenges and Management, Singapore 2019, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2020-0. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2020-0
Roche E., „India, China to Engage in Dialogue on Monday to Resolve Border Row”, Mint, 11 October 2020, at https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-china-to-engage-indialogue-on-monday-to-resolve-border-row-11602407337304.html.
Shabbir T., “Rising China and Its South Asian Neighbors: Evolving Dynamics and the Outlook”, Policy Perspectives, vol. 14, no. 2 (2017), https://doi.org/10.13169/polipers.14.2.0137. DOI: https://doi.org/10.13169/polipers.14.2.0137
Shah F., “Nepal’s Balancing Act”, Foreign Affairs, 25 February 2016, at https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2016-02-25/nepals-balancing-act.
Sharma V., “India’s Lack of Respect for Its South Asian Neighbours is Now Mutual”, The Wire, 20 August 2020, at https://thewire.in/diplomacy/india-south-asia-neighboursforeign-policy-respect.
Shrestha M., Transforming Foreign Affairs of Nepal, Kathmandu 2015.
Shukla D., “India-Nepal Relations: Problems and Prospects”, The Indian Journal of Political Science, vol. 67, no. 2 (2006), at http://www.jstor.org/stable/41856222.
Solanki V., “China’s Advance in Nepal”, IISS, 2 February 2018, at https://www.iiss.org/blogs/analysis/2018/02/china-nepal.
Subramaniam A., “The One Speech That Explains India’s New Strategic Thinking”, The Diplomat, 5 December 2019, at https://thediplomat.com/2019/12/the-one-speech-thatexplains-indias-new-strategic-thinking/.
Tripathi D., “Influence of Borders on Bilateral Ties in South Asia: A Study of Contemporary India–Nepal Relations”, International Studies, vol. 56, no. 2/3 (2019), https://doi.org/10.1177/0020881719851420. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0020881719851420
TV Paul, “When Balance of Power Meets Globalization: China, India and the Small States of South Asia”, Politics, vol. 39, no. 1 (2019), https://doi.org/10.1177/0263395718779930. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0263395718779930
Wagle G.S., “On Nationalism and Populism”, My República, 26 August 2018, at https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/on-nationalism-and-populism/.
Wagner C., “The Role of India and China in South Asia”, Strategic Analysis, vol. 40, no. 4 (2016), https://doi.org/10.1080/09700161.2016.1184790. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09700161.2016.1184790
Xavier C., “India must learn how to abstain in Nepal, resist temptation to micromanage”, The Print, 4 December 2017, at https://theprint.in/opinion/india-nepal-resist-temptation-to-micromanage/19847/.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.