<b>T N Ninan: </b>China 5; India 1

The message from Beijing is clear: acknowledge superior Chinese power, and behave accordingly

The principal international challenge for India in the coming years has to be coping with China’s rise and growing assertiveness. Beijing’s reminder this past week of this country’s 1962 military debacle is an over-the-top response to a relatively minor Sikkim border stand-off, quite apart from it failing to recognise India’s current military capabilities. But if we are not tone deaf we should take note of the increasingly arrogant nature of China’s public protests, which matches the message in private conversations. The Chinese have taken to telling their Indian interlocutors to bear in mind the 5:1 disparity in the sizes of