The Chinese Dragon has started breathing down the neck of the Indian Foreign Ministry. They have been getting sleepless nights due to a number pronouncements made by Chinese through their various spokespersons. The Chinese are not used to off the cuff remarks or on the spur comments. They weigh things minutely before coming out with any comments and all these pronouncements are parts of a well researched strategy. The Chinese have consistently been on the same stand right from the birth of the Kashmir tragedy. They have always considered it as a disputed territory between the two neighbouring countries and also take Kashmiris as the essential party to the dispute. Since 1948 they have supported the right of self-determination for Kashmiris as envisaged in the UN Security Council resolutions.

They have always seconded these resolutions whenever these came for discussion. However, as the well known Chinese tradition goes, the Dragon usually sleeps and wakes up only when compelled by the circumstances. Not only have they been observing the Kashmir situation keenly but they are very familiar with the history of Kashmir from the ancient times. The earliest Chinese reference to Kashmir dates back to A.D. 541. This relates to the arrival of a Kashmiri Envoy in China during the early part of the reign of Tang dynasty. Kashmir is described as a country “enveloped on all sides like a precious jewel by the snowy mountains, with a valley in the south which leads up to it and serves as a gate of the Kingdom”. Almost all other Chinese accounts of Kashmir give a similar description. Ninety years after this first mention of Kashmir in Chinese records, Hiuen Tsang visited the valley and stayed here as an honoured guest for two years. He entered Kashmir through the valley of Vitasta (present Jehlum).

After crossing over mountains and treading along precipices he claims to have arrived at a stone gate which was the western entrance of the Kingdom. During his two year stay he studied Sutras and Sastras and acquainted himself fully with the country. He describes Kashmir which he calls Kia-shi-mi-lo as a country surrounded on all sides by very high mountains which have very narrow and contracted passes for entry. According to him these natural bulwarks have protected the country from its neighbours who have never succeeded in subduing it. He describes the climate as cold and snow plentiful. The soil is described as very fertile with abundance of fruit and flowers. The people are described as light and frivolous, and of a weak and pusillanimous disposition. “The people are handsome in appearance, but they are given to cunning. They love learning and are well instructed”. He recalls many conferences with the Kashmiri doctors of the sacred law. The two full years which Hiuen Tsang spent in Kashmir was the longest halt at any place which he made during his sixteen years of travels through India and Central Asia. Probably after crossing through the hot and dusty plains of India the cool and salubrious climate of Kashmir cast its spell on him.

Apart from the earlier Buddhist pilgrims to holy sites in India who halted in Kashmir, the Turki pilgrims from Kashgar, Yarkand, and other parts of Central Asia, whether on their way to Makkah or on their return, never failed to make a long stay in Kashmir in the recent past i.e., just before the partition of India which resulted in total disconnection of Kashmir from its northern neighbours. The Chinese records of the Annals of Tang dynasty mention the arrival of the ambassadors from Kashmir sent by Candrapida and Muktapida (Lalitaditya) of the Karakot dynasty. Those days Tibet was very powerful and its rulers had been causing lot of trouble to China and other neighbouring kingdoms. In fact, Muktapida had entered into a treaty of military alliance with the rulers of Tang dynasty of China against Tibet which he subsequently raided with a strong Kashmirian army. He failed to conquer it as his entire army perished in the cold and high altitude deserts of Ladakh. After few years of the visit of Muktapida’s envoy, Kashmir was visited by another Chinese pilgrim, OU-KONG. His account is very important in regard to the routes of ancient Kashmir.

From this it is evident that in ancient times the Independent Sovereign Kingdom of Kashmir had very strong relations with the Chinese rulers of that time. The Chinese are fully aware of the trials and tribulations undergone by Kashmiris under the external rule. They can easily understand the background of the aspirations of Kashmiris. The increased peaceful mass agitation in Kashmir since 2008 has been a pivotal factor in their showing heightened awareness about the Kashmir problem and is responsible for the pro-Kashmiri stand.

Another important factor is definitely the growing bonhomie between India and America. Chinese surely resent American attempts to prop up India as a leader in South Asia especially in economic terms. In fact, in early sixties the then Chinese push was prompted by the lead given by Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru to the non-aligned movement through the use of the Panch Sheel slogan. The 1962 incursion threw India straight into the lap of America. At the present moment the Chinese interest in Kashmir is the easiest way to make India uncomfortable. The Chinese seem to be taking a stronger stand than even the Pakistanis who appear to have lost interest in Kashmir after the majority of Kashmiris showed an inclination for total independence.

Strangely, the present leadership of all hues and shades in Kashmir seems to be totally ignorant of the ancient history of Kashmir (especially its relationship with China) for whose independence they claim to be struggling! They seem to be totally engrossed in a tussle of hartals and curfews which has resulted in a siege without end. They appear totally unconcerned with the Chinese moves! In the changed scenario in the South Asian region due to America’s Afghan War China is going to be an important factor. In spite of their so called “best” efforts at spurring Indo-Pak dialogue process, the west led by America has failed to achieve any substantial progress in resolving the decades old Kashmir dispute, The intractable problem of Kashmir may ultimately be sorted out by the Chinese intervention! The visa stance including the refusal to the General posted in Kashmir and the explanation regarding the Chinese Army presence in the Gilgit-Baltistan area are just the beginning. The initiative of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) to plead the cause of Kashmiris too appears part of the same strategy. It would be quite interesting to watch further Chinese moves in this regard.