For a New Kind of ‘Forward Policy’

This paper argues that more than their boundary dispute, it is the place of Tibet in the Sino–Indian relationship that is at the core of the continuing mistrust between the two countries. For China, pushing economic development as a panacea to ethnic grievances has been an insufficient strategy. To ensure sustainable political stability in Tibet, it is necessary to give India greater space in Tibet in the form of improved economic, tourist and religious exchanges as a way of relieving the sense of cultural siege that ethnic Tibetans suffer from. India meanwhile, having accepted Chinese sovereignty over Tibet, will have to reciprocate with a new ‘forward policy’ of its own allowing for greater Chinese access to its own markets and the removal of other discriminatory restrictions on Chinese travelling to India. The way ahead lies in converting Tibet’s political centrality into an economic centrality in the Sino–Indian bilateral relationship.