Well played, boys
You don`t say!
Darius Nakhoonwala
Surprise, surprise! Leader writers are maturing. Hu Jintao, the Chinese president was here last week, on his way to Pakistan. In the past, everyone would have gone gaga. Not this time though. Poor old Hu got as cold a reception as the cable-wallah does.
The Telegraph was the first to get off the chocks and got straight down to business. "The visit is somewhat ill-timed, not because of the controversy over Arunachal Pradesh, which could be less than a side-show. The cause for pessimism is much more fundamental. In Asia, India and China are competing for the same political and economic space. The possibilities of adjustments within this overall contradiction are restricted…" In short, neither country will give any quarter.
The Hindustan Times said pretty much the same thing, but after observing the usual niceties. "The problem is the ambivalence in China`s stance… on the one hand it seeks more trade and investment; on the other it treats India as a strategic adversary. China should be wary of strategic over-reach."
The Indian Express focused on the nuclear relationship, though why one can only guess. Maybe this was its way of finding something positive to talk about. "The Sino-Pak nuclear nexus exposed India to unending terrorism and permanent nuclear blackmail from Pakistan. This is why civilian nuclear cooperation between India and China marks a paradigm shift in bilateral relations. Nevertheless, we must hold our breath." We will, don`t worry, till we go blue in our faces.
The Hindu gave a lecture, as befits its status as the chief (if self-appointed) interpreter of the tea leaves, even when none exist. "The key question is whether India and China will be partners or rivals… Pax Americana is a dangerous concept... This week`s summit-level meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Hu Jintao sends an unusually upbeat peace and development message to the world… It is that India and China are partners, not rivals..." Really? Wow!
The Deccan Herald, after summarizing the 13 agreements said there was "still a long way to go… China is yet to explicitly express support to the India-US nuclear deal. Beijing `s position will become clearer when the issue comes up in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). However, it does seem now that China will not oppose it as it is interested in securing a share in the business deals that civilian nuclear energy co-operation with India will open up."
The Asian Age also, surprisingly, wrote a plain vanilla edit and the Pioneer was as usual vinegary but didn`t lose sight of the key fact: China sees itself as a world leader and will not tolerate competition.
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