Exploring Bhutan's Delicate Balancing Act Between India and China

South Asia is a region of remarkable diversity, encompassing countries such as Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Afghanistan, and Myanmar. Typically, India has been considered the power most capable of exercising its influence in the region. Yet, in recent years, there has been another power that has laid claim to South Asia as part of its periphery and has sought to expand its influence in the region. For the past decade and a half, China has made deeper inroads into South Asia, not only offering capital and infrastructure, but also deepening political ties and people-to-people relations. 

When did we begin seeing China’s interest in the region? How does China interact differently with South Asia compared to other powers like the United States? How does China’s slowing economy affect its economic engagement in the region?

In this episode of Interpreting India, Jabin Jacob joins Saheb Singh Chadha to answer these pressing questions and discuss recent developments in South Asia. 

Episode Contributors

Jabin Thomas Jacob is associate professor at the Department of International Relations and Governance Studies at the Shiv Nadar Institute of Eminence, a nonresident fellow at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress, and adjunct research fellow at the National Maritime Foundation, New Delhi. Jacob holds a PhD in Chinese Studies from the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and has spent time as a researcher in Taiwan, France, and Singapore. His research interests include Chinese domestic politics, China-South Asia relations, Sino-Indian border areas, Indian and Chinese worldviews, and center-province relations in China.

Saheb Singh Chadha is a research analyst in the Security Studies Program at Carnegie India. His research focuses on China’s foreign and security policies, India-China relations, and India’s military modernization. He is broadly interested in the geopolitics of South Asia and the Indo-Pacific. He is also a researcher on a project examining the nature and dynamics of cross-border violence and its impact on civilian communities.

Additional Readings

How China Engages South Asia: Themes, Partners and Tools, edited by Constantino Xavier and Jabin Jacob

G20 in Delhi, US Ties, Global South Leadership: Decoding Beijing Worldview Through Chinese Press by Jabin Jacob

A Fresh Look at India’s Neighborhood First Policy, by Constantino Xavier and Milan Vaishnav

China’s Influence in South Asia: Vulnerabilities and Resilience in Four Countries by Deep Pal

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