Inscrutable Chinese move: Asking its citizens to evacuate; raises eyebrows

The shoe is on the other foot. There was a time when most nations were in a scramble to pull out their citizens from Wuhan – the epicentre of coronavirus outbreak. India had never joined the melee, preferring to bide its time, keeping Beijing’s sensibilities in mind. Therefore, there was some consternation in think tanks in New Delhi over China’s decision to evacuate its citizens, including students, tourists and businessmen, from India who are facing "difficulties" in the country and want to return home in the wake of the pandemic.

The Chinese embassy has even put out a notice on its website, asking those wanting to return home to book tickets in special flights. Sources said the move to evacuate its citizens comes on the heels of India posting its biggest single-day jump in cases of COVID-19, overtaking Iran to become one of the 10 worst-hit nations. The Chinese decision could not have come at a worse time, just when the Indian government has allowed domestic air travel to resume and is looking at the possibility of international flights starting in mid-June. China's decision to evacuate its citizens also comes at a time when troops of both the countries are locked in a tense standoff in the disputed areas of Pangong Tso and Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.

Recent media reports suggest that the Chinese have moved troops and heavy vehicles across the Line of Actual Control near the Pangong Tso lake and are well within Indian territory. In the Galwan Nala area, the Chinese have walked in with troops from its road head nearly 10-15 km from the Indian post KM120 Sources in Chinese Embassy, however, indicated that the flights back home have nothing to do with the escalating border tension; however, sceptics point out that China was never in a tearing hurry to evacuate its people from New York or the UK, for that matter. Incidentally, most Chinese nationals in India had already left the country for the Spring Festival.

Only a miniscule number – say, 2000 – remain here. Given the opacity of the system in China it is difficult to ascertain the real reasons for its decision to pull out citizens; but ostensibly it has more to do with extraneous factors and less to do with the spike in corona cases in India.

The Chinese Army has deployed over 5,000 of its troops on the Line of Actual Control at different locations in the Ladakh sector; the Indian Army is also increasing presence of its troops to match their strength and is also enhancing its presence in other areas.

Noted strategic expert Colonel Anil Bhatt says that it is absolutely unfair on part of the Chinese to put out an evacuation announcement for their nationals asking them to reportedly register at 48 hours notice if they want to go back. “ This kind of an announcement is uncalled for. It appears to be an attempt to needlessly alarm the Chinese diaspora or Chinese visitors in India.”

Colonel Bhat says that, ironically, India is a safer COVID 19 zone than China. ''Going by news reports, what we have seen this month in areas along the Line of Actual Control is a step up from previous frequent incidents of pushing, pulling, wrestling, grappling and fisticuffs,'' he adds. Asked to comment on the announcement that the Chinese nationals willing to return to China must register by the morning of May 27 for taking temporary flights back to China, sources in the government said, “This is for the Chinese embassy to tell you what is the logistical requirement and why the short notice. We don’t read too much into this. “

Some experts, however, wondered why there was a need to fly back Chinese nationals when most of the 20,000 Chinese nationals in India have gone back. “ My understanding is that most of them went back to China for the Spring festival and got stranded there. They have not been able to return.” Despite repeated efforts, Chinese embassy sources did not answer the phone.