‘Are We (Really) Brothers?’: Contemporary India as Observed by Chinese Diplomats

Abstract

This article considers the views that Chinese diplomats have developed on contemporary India. Using Chinese-written memoirs and essays, as well as discussions with active or retired diplomats of the People’s Republic of China who served in India, this research explores the diversity of the Chinese elite’s perceptions of the emergence, domestic politics and cultures of India today. It will be argued that four main sets of rather negative perceptions are produced: (1) candid views describing India in naïve, passionate or diplomatic ways; (2) judgemental opinions perpetuating a dirty-cum-messy image of India; and (3) more specifically of its corrupt and volatile communalism-prone society; and, finally, (4) more subtle insights on India’s current polity. But, given the perpetuation of rather stable, yet tense, Sino–Indian interactions at the dawn of the 21st century, conclusions will be drawn on the relatively-low impact that Chinese critical perceptions of India have had on Beijing’s recent policymaking towards New Delhi.