Rajnath Singh issues a stern warning to China

In a strong message to China, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said that if harmed, India will not spare anyone, as he asserted that India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as a powerful country and is headed to be among the top three economies of the world.

Singh, in his address to the Indian-American community in San Francisco, also sent a subtle message to the United States that New Delhi does not believe in a diplomacy of ‘zero-sum game’ and its relationship with one country cannot be at the expense of the other.

The defense minister was in Washington, DC, for the India-US 2+2 ministerial meeting.

For meetings at the IndoPACOM headquarters in Hawaii, he then went to San Francisco.

India’s defense minister spoke at a reception in San Francisco to honor him, in which he talked about Indian soldiers’ bravery on the border with China.

“I cannot say openly what they (Indian soldiers) did and what decisions we (the government) took. However, I am certain that India has sent a message to China that it will not spare anyone if India is harmed. This message has reached China. Is it possible for India to become the United States of India? “he asserted.

Violence in the Pangong Lake area sparked the Ladakh border standoff on May 5, 2020, between the Indian and Chinese militaries.

After the clashes in Galwan Valley on June 15, 2020, tensions rose even higher.

Twenty Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers were killed in the clashes.

To date, 15 rounds of military consultations have taken place between India and China in an attempt to end the crisis in eastern Ladakh. As a result of the negotiations, both the north and south shores of Pangong Lake, as well as the Gogra region, completed their disengagement processes last year.

Singh said India does not believe in ‘zero-sum game’ diplomacy, but did not mention American pressure on Russia as a result of the Ukraine war.

It does not follow, he said, that if India has good relations with one country, that it will have worse relations with others.

“This kind of diplomacy has never been used by India. This will never happen in India (kind of diplomacy). In international relations, we don’t believe in a zero-sum game “It was his opinion.

A bilateral relationship in which both countries benefit is important to India, according to him.

His words came at a time when India’s stance on the Ukraine crisis and its decision to purchase discounted Russian oil were causing some concern in Washington.

“India’s public image has shifted. India’s reputation has risen. no power in the world will be able to stop India from becoming one of the world’s top three economies in the next few years “That’s what Singh had to say.

According to Singh, if any country in the world wanted to grow and prosper, they always considered establishing a vibrant trade relationship with India in the past.

By the time India celebrates its 100th anniversary of independence, “we should have a similar ecosystem in place,” he said.

At a 2013 reception in New Jersey, he told a group of Indian Americans that “the success story of India is not over, it is waiting for the Bharatiya Janata Party to come to power,” according to the defense minister.

At the time, people were displeased with the then-Congress government’s performance.

Mr. Modi claimed that the country had been “turned around” and that India’s image had improved during his eight-year tenure in power.

“People around the world have come to realize that India is no longer a powerless nation. It is one of the most powerful countries on the planet. Today, India has the potential to be the world’s most powerful country. The world has finally woken up to the enormous potential of India “he stated.

‘Grand achievement’ in such a short time could mean nothing else for a country like India, he said.

“Several prime ministers in India have become the country’s head of state after serving as prime minister. Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi, on the other hand, were already the country’s leaders before they became prime ministers, just like Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru “he stated.

A new and confident Bharat exists today, he said, noting that India is now on its way to becoming a self-reliant nation and that the Modi government is taking important steps in this direction, including in the defense sector.

Indigenization of India’s defense sector has taken several key steps, he said, as he briefly described some of the government’s decisions.

The defence minister noted that India has a high level of trust and confidence in the country’s IT sector and that the Modi government has taken steps toward massive digitisation.