most severe.It was struggling against ago- fully concentrated across the McMahon Line nizing difficulties to get even lightly armed to implement Nehru's attack order was de- infantry to the area:all weapons and sup- stroyed,Tawang occupied.The Chinese plies had to be man-carried over slippery then paused and Zhou Enlai appealed again trails across steep ridges at altitudes lethal to Nehru,offering a cease-fire and with- to its unacclimatized and underclad troops. drawal of Chinese forces to the north of the The commander whose troops would have to McMahon Line if India would agree to end attempt the militarily impossible task of its forward probing and negotiate.Nehru re- driving superior Chinese forces out of im- jected the offer instantly.A second Chinese pregnable defensive positions recalled in his offensive took only three days to crush all In- memoirs his reaction to hearing Nehru's dian resistance in both the disputed areas, vaunt on the radio news:"The statement hit east and west.China then declared a unilat- me like a bludgeon.I found it hard to be- eral cease-fire and shortly afterward with- lieve that any responsible person let alone a drew its forces to positions well behind the statesman of international repute could pub-McMahon Line. licly make such an irresponsible operational Such,then,was what Prime Minister pronouncement....The military implications Vajpayee described as "China's armed ag- and the likely Chinese reaction were clear,at gression against India."In fact,India was least to us up at the front.If Nehru had de- the aggressive party.A response in kind to clared his intention to attack,then the Chi- India's military challenge was imposed upon nese were not going to wait to be atcacked."2 China,and when it came it was measured Nor did they. and appropriate. By then Beijing had concluded that Beijing warned India not to deploy forces Nehru's adamant refusal to negotiate was across the McMahon Line again-and it was unalterable.While India's evident military 25 years before India flouted that warning. weakness meant that its challenges on the Zhou told Nehru that since India was not ground could be crushed or repulsed,that prepared to negotiate,China was "willing might change.New Delhi was drawing to wait with patience."It is still waiting. closer to the United States,which at that Nehru did not waver from his position that time was treating the PRC as the key domin- India's boundaries were "firm and definite ion of the "evil empire."American support [and]not open to discussion with anybody, had transformed the Kuomintang on Tai- and no successor government in New Delhi wan from a fugitive rump into an aggressive has varied that obdurate refusal to negotiate enemy,and the CIA was actively fomenting a settlement. rebellion in Tibet.China's strategic ally,the Soviet Union,was turning hostile.Beijing The Second Provocation therefore had reason to feel besieged.In that Over the next quarter of a century,however, context all strategic,diplomatic,and poli- successive Indian governments moved stead- tical considerations pointed the Chinese to ily to normalize relations with China.Then one conclusion:the need for a military coun- in 1987 the border dispute was suddenly re- terblow that would put an end to India's vived in an acute form and turned back to- attempt to impose its territorial claims by ward the arbitrament of war.Again under force and might persuade New Delhi to adventurist command,the Indian army took negotiate. as a challenge another minor confrontation Chinese forces attacked all along the dis- over an Indian post newly established north puted borders on October 20.India's most of the McMahon Line-indeed,in the very advanced "forward policy"posts in the west area that had sparked the border war.Hasty were wiped out,the infantry brigade pain- deployment of Indian troops and air support 116 WORLD POLICY JOURNAL+SUMMER 19N Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner.Further reproduction prohibited without permission.Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission