China and India must be friends, not turn into foes

The co-existence of the modern with the traditional in China and India sets the countries apart from the rest of the world. People in the two countries have embraced new technology and carved a niche for themselves in today's knowledge-based global economy. But they have not allowed outside influence to play with their cultures.

The two neighbors have had friendly relations for thousands of years, marred only by the 1962 border conflict.

I believe the conflict was the result of gross misunderstanding. Jawaharlal Nehru, then India's prime minister, did not understand the depth of the desire of the Communist Party of China (CPC) under Chairman Mao Zedong to unify the country. Nehru and other Indian leaders had earlier agreed to the British plan of dividing India into "Hindu" and "Muslim" states. Nehru, therefore, assumed mistakenly that Mao was like him, and would compromise on the one-China principle.