India and China’s Game of Chicken at the “Chicken’s Neck”

Posted: July 25th, 2017

By Michael Kugelman

Michael Kugelman is the senior associate for South and Southeast Asia at the Woodrow Wilson Center. His main specialty is Pakistan, India, and Afghanistan and U.S. relations with each of them. Mr. Kugelman writes monthly columns for Foreign Policy's South Asia Channel and monthly commentaries for War on the Rocks. He also contributes regular pieces to the Wall Street Journal's Think Tank blog. He has also produced a number of longer publications on South Asia, including the edited volumes Pakistan's Interminable Energy Crisis: Is There Any Way Out?, Pakistan's Runaway Urbanization: What Can Be Done?, and India's Contemporary Security Challenges. Mr. Kugelman received his M.A. in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. He received his B.A. from American University's School of International Service.

The recent tensions between India and China have entered their sixth week. What began as a dispute over the location of a Chinese road building project along a contested border in Bhutan has drawn Asia’s two strongest powers deeper into a decades-long issue over sovereign territory and regional influence. China has called for India to remove the troops it has deployed to the border, though India shows no signs of complying. Neither side is spoiling for conflict, nor do they appear ready to compromise, making the proposition of a quick and easy agreement more remote. The Cipher Brief spoke to Michael Kugelman, Deputy Director of the Wilson Center’s Asia program, to learn more about the origins of the ongoing tensions and prospects for de-escalation.

The Cipher Brief: What are the origins of this border conflict and what has precipitated the recent uptick in tensions?

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