New Delhi, October 23, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Friday expressed concern over China’s conduct along the India-China border and its alleged support for Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, calling for predictable bilateral relations in which trade and economic dependencies cannot be weaponised against India.
Tharoor made the remarks during an interactive session at the NDTV World Summit, amid a political debate over purported comments by Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) chief Shatrujeet Kapur that the Army was successfully handling a face-off with China in Arunachal Pradesh.
“The way in which China has behaved on our borders, the way in which they’ve nibbled away at our territory, their overt support for Pakistan during the brief conflict (Operation Sindoor) between our two countries last year is worrying,” Tharoor said.
He alleged that China had supplied weapons to Pakistan during the conflict and provided real-time data through satellite surveillance over Indian territory. While acknowledging that supplying weapons was within China’s legal rights, he described the alleged provision of operational data during the conflict as a hostile act.
Discussing bilateral trade, Tharoor described the situation as one of interdependence without trust, arguing that India’s dependence on China was significantly greater than China’s reliance on India.
“On our own borders we have the problem of interdependence without trust. I can’t even say interdependence because our dependence on China is far greater than theirs on us and yet can we trust them?” he said.
The Congress leader also referred to the 2020 Galwan clash and other border incidents, alleging that China had unilaterally disrupted existing understandings intended to maintain peace along the frontier.
Tharoor questioned why Beijing continued to create tensions along the border while its exports to India were expanding. He argued that the combination of border tensions and growing trade dependence raised concerns about India’s economic vulnerability.
He further warned that dependence on Chinese imports could expose Indian industries and infrastructure projects to supply disruptions. Citing rare earth exports and large tunnel-boring machines, Tharoor said China had previously restricted supplies of critical materials and equipment, affecting India’s ability to undertake infrastructure projects.
He said India had developed a significant dependence on large tunnel-boring machines from China, adding that the interruption of supplies had affected highway construction and related work until exports resumed.
Tharoor stressed the need to reduce vulnerabilities arising from concentrated import sources and to build a more reliable relationship with Beijing.
“We need, as far as possible, predictable relationships. Relationships which won’t be weaponised, and trade dependencies which won’t be weaponised against us,” he said.
His remarks underscored concerns over the intersection of border security, strategic competition and economic dependence in India-China relations, with the Congress MP calling for arrangements that protect India’s interests while making bilateral trade more predictable.
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