There is something about the number five in Sino-Indian relations. Asia's two giants have long defined their relationship in terms of the famous Pancha Sheela: mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty; mutual nonaggression; mutual noninterference in each other's internal affairs; equality and mutual benefit; and peaceful coexistence.
Now China's new leaders have enunciated a new Pancha Sheela, with President Xi Jinping offering a "five-point proposal" for Sino-Indian relations. The updated principles would maintain strategic communication and healthy bilateral relations; harness each other's strengths and expand cooperation in infrastructure, investment and other areas; deepen cultural ties and increase mutual understanding and friendship; expand coordination and collaboration in multilateral affairs to safeguard developing countries' legitimate interests and address global challenges; and accommodate each other's core concerns and reconcile bilateral disagreements amicably.
India would be happy to embrace each of these principles. Only the fifth point is tricky, for it leaves China's "core concerns" undefined. Traditionally, these were Tibet and Taiwan, but Chinese officials have recently referred to their claims on the South China Sea as a "core interest" as well.
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