Did the US trigger the 1962 India–China war?

Much has been written about the 1962 war between India and China.

The conflict, which began on 20 October 1962, also known as the Sino–Indian War, came after years of tension between the two countries over the Himalayan border, particularly the McMahon Line.

It ended with China announcing a unilateral ceasefire on 20 November 1962, and withdrawing from the territory it had occupied under the government of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

However, a new study is arguing that the United States played a crucial role in laying the base for the conflict between India and China. The study comes as the two countries are taking gradual steps to improve relations.

Let’s take a closer look at what we know.

About the study

The study was undertaken by Dr Lakshman Kumar of the Jindal School of International Affairs. Entitled Unravelling the Geopolitical Dimensions of the 1962 Sino–Indian Conflict: How the US Shaped the Sino–India Split, it was published in the Journal of Public Affairs (Wiley) this past April.

The study relies on top-secret CIA records that have been declassified, diplomatic archives from the Prime Minister’s Museum & Library (PMML), the Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), documents from the Cold War International History Project, and the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

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The study argues against the conventional wisdom that the long-running tension between India and China culminated in the 1962 war. It claims that “policies pursued by the United States and the Soviet Union during the late 1950s and early 1960s had a mix of intended and unintended consequences on India and China”.

It claims that the US elevated Tibet into an issue between India and China – essentially the old “divide and conquer” method so perfected by Britain – in order to exert influence over New Delhi’s foreign policy. This came in the aftermath of an independent India, under its first Prime Minister Nehru, choosing the path of non-alignment. Washington did so in order to draw both India and China closer to its Cold War goals.

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“While the Soviets wanted to collaborate with India and China, the United States desired a clear split,” Kumar wrote.

The study claimed that the US sought to take advantage of the Tibetan uprising in 1956. The documents revealed that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) offered support to resistance groups inside Tibet, including funds, supplies, and reconnaissance missions.

‘Used critical theory’

Kumar said he had used “critical theory … to examine the sudden downturn in relations between India and China in the late 1950s and the subsequent conflict of 1962, as well as the critical role played by the US in shaping the events”.

He quoted a 1951 US State Department document that stated, “Diplomatically, the US should endeavour to use Tibet as a weapon for alerting [India] to the danger of attempting to appease any Communist government.”

The study claims that Washington capitalised on the goings-on after the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959. It says that the CIA’s actions were not meant to help Tibet but rather to increase the divide between the two nations and scuttle any chance of an agreement over the region being reached.

Kumar wrote that Beijing “became convinced that [New Delhi] was conspiring to ‘seize Tibet’ by inciting rebellion”. “The US intelligence community was satisfied with the results of the Tibetan revolt in March 1959, as it caused enormous friction in Sino–India relations,” he added.

“The covert operations of the [US] achieved much more than they desired. It indeed led China and India on a collision course while further deepening the Sino–Soviet split.”

The study also quoted a note from the JFK Presidential Library that said the United States must “restrain expressions… so as to give the Chinese no pretext for alleging any American involvement.”

The study said the development forced Nehru to seek military aid from Washington despite his non-aligned stance, which was “much to the satisfaction of the US”. It added that the US received “much more than they desired”.

While this may sound far-fetched to some, ex-US Ambassador John Kenneth Galbraith’s memoirs have already spoken about how the CIA conducted intelligence operations to shape public opinion within India.

Kumar in September co-authored another study alongside Pankaj Jha and Jyoti M. Pathani, which was published in India Quarterly.

“[India] must remain vigilant against external influences that may seek to exploit Sino–Indian disputes for their own interests,” the paper said. “China, on the other hand, needs to acknowledge the heavy price it paid in initiating the conflict despite being conscious of the ‘imperialistic conspiracy’ in Tibet.”

With inputs from agencies