Ananth Krishnan has served as China correspondent for The Hindu and lives in Beijing. He was a Visiting Fellow at Brookings India in 2019. He has also served as Beijing-based Associate Editor at India Today Group until August 2018. He holds master’s degree in Social Sciences from University of Chicago. Ananth Krishnan has been covering China from China for over a decade. He first moved to China in summer of 2008. During decade in China, he had a ringside view of China’s remarkable transformation. From the more disciplined and understated Hu Jintao to dark, unbridled nationalism of Xi Jiping. Ananth Krishnan has mastered Chinese language and gained deep and unique insights into politics, society and economy of China and hence is in a position to enlighten us on the two most populous countries and their inter-relations.
The book discusses the issue which is of profound significance to India and indeed to the world. His eye and intellect are probing, and he is a good explorer and researcher. The effect is brilliant where he is able to convey penetrating insights on China in most readable manner combing sharp analysis with an engaging familiarity with the country, its ethos and its people. Ananth Krishnan’s book provides powerful guide to today’s China and how India should engage with it.
Ananth Krishnan’s book is really two separate studies. One is an explanation of China under rule of Xi Jinping. It covers material that those familiar with China will tend to know already. But for general readers, it’s a fine introduction. Krishnan’s account of Chinese Communist Party explains that “the Party is everywhere” and shows that the organization is less akin to political party in democracy and more like a framework that runs throughout administration of entire country. The other section is detailed study of relationship between India and China. This part will be valuable for readers beyond India. Krishnan looks in detail at changing patterns of trade, showing how new links have opened up.
India needs to work out what sort of relationship it really wants with China, and greater knowledge of China has to be part of that search. Relatively few Indians study Mandarin or research aspects of China outside security issues. This deficit will become more problematic as new, bigger questions emerge. Should India deepen its relationship with Japan, Australia and U.S. (‘the Quad’) to push back against China’s power in Indian and Pacific Oceans? Can India create technology partnership with China, taking advantage of India’s expertise in services or are security issues too great to permit that? India urgently needs to know China better. This book is an excellent start.
The book under review can appropriately be described as current history of China with focus on India-China relations. Reading Krishnan’s by-lines is not only alluring, but enlightening as well. China is like a kaleidoscope of rainbow; fascinating and yet enigmatic and intriguing. More you scratch the surface, the more you are puzzled and that is what Krishnan had done in the book.
The book running into 418 pages is thematically divided into six parts and 24 chapters. It attempts to capture wide spectrum of bilateral relationship between the two countries. Each chapter merits a careful reading which enriches the readers understanding of China and India-China relations in particular. In Part I, Krishnan looks at the Political challenge of dealing with rise of one party state – one which is trying to shape global institutions in line with its own values. It is important to understand what those values are. Chapter 1 looks at the China model and how Mao’s legacy continues to shape country’s politics. Krishnan observes that fundamental concept of ‘perpetual struggle’, as espoused by Mao, continues to be guiding principle of Communist Party of China (CPC) even though Chinese economy has undergone radical changes since Mao’s time. In Chapter 2, Krishnan gives an account of rise of Xi Jinping and how he has now come to control party, military and government. Xi has put forward ‘Chinese Dream’ campaign to counter economic and political challenges that he is facing at home and abroad. The rise of Xi Jinping and changes unfolding in China in wake of his ascension from centralisation of power to increasingly prominent role for political party that earlier preferred to pull strings from behind scenes. In Chapter 3, Krishnan looks at battle of ideas and role of ideology in Chinese politics.
The economic transformation of China is topic of discussion in second part of the book. It examines challenge of learning from China’s remarkable and growth story and navigating a lopsided economic relation driven by Indian dependencies on Chinese manufacturing. In Chapter 4, Krishnan talks about a range of small shops in coastal province of Zhejiang where Tanjore paintings, Rajasthani jewellery, Kanchivaram sarees and Krishna paintings are manufactured and exported to India. The author breaks the myth that only central government in China is involved in infrastructure building and manufacturing of goods. He points out that local governments have been allowed to formulate policies and invest in human capital which has led to creation of the base. Krishnan highlights statements made by Apple’s Tim Cook who believes that availability of skills in one location is the reason why companies prefer China over other nations. Chapter 4 talks of manufacturing miracle and how Chinese supply chains became so integral with Indian economy. Chapter 5 examines how urbanization has transformed China and lessons to be learnt from promises and perils of China’s experience. Krishnan observes that number of companies are now shifting to cheaper locations in Southeast Asia as Chinese workers are getting more educated and demanding higher wages. Since China is an important part of the global demand apart from being part of global value chains, it is not easy to shift out supply chains, especially of sophisticated electronic products. The author comes to conclusion that the unique characteristics of China’s manufacturing rise would be difficult to replicate in other countries. Krishnan is impressed with decentralised nature of Chinese governance structure where mayors are vested with a lot of power. Various Chinese infrastructure projects like China-Europe rail link and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) have been examined by Krishnan. Chapter 6 discusses emergence of ‘tech China’. Krishnan discusses growing reliance on technology as a driver of both growth and governance. He points out that China has broken the myth that technological advancement takes place better in free democracies. He highlights important role played by Chinese government in infrastructure building and promotion of start-ups. He adds that important reason behind growth of tech start-ups in China was restrictions imposed on entry of foreign companies. He throws light on the investment of Chinese companies in Indian start-ups.
Part Three of the book examines the third major challenge, which is manifested in India’s diplomatic and military engagement with China. Chapter 7 looks at emergence of increasingly assertive and confident China under Xi and how it is looking to play a greater role in world scene and in many ways to India’s detriment. Chapter 8 discusses complicated dynamic of India - China relationship and how this balance is increasingly tilting towards competition and not cooperation. Chapters 9, 10 and 11 discuss most important drivers of that trend: boundary dispute and China Pakistan Axis. In Part Three, Krishnan gives a detailed account of lingering border issue between the two neighbours. He covers visits of Xi Jinping to India and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to China in 2014 and 2015 respectively. He points out that Chinese were glad to see formation of full majority NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government at centre as they found it easier dealing with BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) leaders at the helm. He goes on to cover Doklam crisis of 2017 and Galwan crisis of 2020. He observes a distinct shift in attitudes over last few years in both establishments even though relationship between Xi and Modi started on a favourable note.
In fourth part of the book, Krishnan discusses circumstances that led to 1962 crisis. He debates whether war was inevitable given the contrasting perspectives of nations on border question. Krishnan author believes that a solution could have been reached earlier through negotiations but that option is highly unlikely now given sentiments attached to this issue. The author believes that India should take lead in solving border disputes irrespective of how China views them.
In Part Five of the book, Krishnan tries to present a different perspective of China as seen from its restless frontiers. The author has penned down his observations of his visits to Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR), Xinjiang and Hong Kong in part five of the book. He describes unrest that Chinese authorities face from these regions and how they have dealt with such challenges. The case of Xinjiang is similar to case of Tibet as Uighurs are being brutally suppressed. Infrastructure investment and demographic changes are being pursued to deal with hostilities emerging out of these areas. The author covers recent Hong Kong protests and talks about how ‘one country two systems’ model is slowly giving way to ‘One China’ model.
In part six of the book, Krishnan gives seven accounts of seven different Chinese individuals. The reader is introduced to diversity of Chinese people and their lives and livelihood.
One should definitely read the book if one aspires to understand how Chinese have come to occupy their global prominence and where India stands in their mind. Given the rising geopolitical and geoeconomics issues between India and China, this book is extremely significant, engaging timely must read for anyone who wants to understand the present China Challenge. The book is a seminal contribution to chronicle the complex India-China relations in very objective and unbiased manner and it has an enduring value.
