No reset in sight for India China ties, says Former envoy Ashok Kantha

A full reset in India China relations is not on the horizon, said Ashok Kantha, former Indian Ambassador to China, in an interview to CNBC-TV18, amid continued military tensions and worsening strategic mistrust between the two countries.“We have started the process of rebuilding relations, but we have a long way to go,” he said, adding that the problems in the relationship remain too deep for a meaningful breakthrough.
Kantha pointed to China’s use of economic pressure as a cause for concern. “China has a habit of weaponising dependencies,” he said, citing recent curbs on exports of rare earth magnets, which are critical for India’s auto industry. India continues to face vulnerabilities in other key sectors with heavy reliance on Chinese inputs.
Despite limited disengagement along parts of the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Kantha noted that the border situation remains abnormal and dangerous. “The subsequent process of de-escalation and de-induction of troops hasn’t even started. We have heavy deployments on both sides. It is risky, and it is not desirable,” he said.He reiterated that India continues to uphold the principle that border peace is essential for progress in bilateral ties. “The state of the borders reflects the state of the nations—this linkage the Chinese side sometimes does not accept, but we are quite firm on it,” he said. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had also reinforced this message to his Chinese counterpart during their meeting on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Qingdao.

Kantha also warned of growing military collusion between China and Pakistan. “What we have today is not really a two-front situation, but one front with Pakistan reinforced by China,” he said, adding that 80% of the Pakistani Army’s inventory is now Chinese. He pointed to evidence of Chinese satellite and tactical support during Operation Sindoor and warned that Beijing may further step up military backing for Islamabad.

He said India’s decision to walk out of the SCO joint statement—after China did not support India’s concerns on terrorism—was a clear signal. “There can’t be a more open-and-shut case of terrorism” than the Pahalgam attack, where 26 people were killed after their religion was identified. The SCO statement included a reference to Balochistan but not Pahalgam. “China not going along with that was not helpful at all—just as their behaviour during Operation Sindoor was not helpful,” he said.

Kantha concluded that China’s posture is part of a broader pattern where it is “not helpful” to Indian interests—whether in multilateral forums, in India’s neighbourhood, or increasingly in the Indian Ocean region.

Watch accompanying video for entire conversation.