‘China in SAARC? To What Effect?’: A Response to the Debate

Sujit Dutta

PRESENTLY ON LIEN Joined IDSA 1987 Expertise China’s Foreign Policy and Diplomacy; State and Politics in 20th Century China; Asian Security issues; India-China Relations; International Relations Theory Education PhD in… Continue reading ‘China in SAARC? To What Effect?’: A Response to the Debate read more

The responses to the arguments that I forwarded in my initial essay, ‘China in SAARC? To What Effect?’, have introduced interesting dimensions to this debate. While most of the respondents have agreed with my proposition that it is premature to think about China’s entry into the South Asian regionalist project and that it would introduce complex challenges that would be difficult to manage, they disagree with some of the reasons that I have cited. Some others have supported China’s entry and believe it will strengthen the region building process and enhance SAARC’s international significance. It is therefore necessary to elaborate some of the points that I have made.