India’s NSG membership will touch ‘raw nerve’ with Pak: China

TIL Desk/World/Beijing-China’s official media today went public over India’s NSG bid for the first time, saying New Delhi’s membership of the elite club will not only touch a “raw nerve” in Pakistan and increase a nuclear arms race in the region but also “jeopardise” China’s national interests.

An op-ed commentary in state-run newspaper, the first write-up on the issue since China’s opposition to India’s bid, said New Delhi’s NSG membership will set off a nuclear confrontation in the region.

“India and Pakistan, both nuclear powers in the region, keep alert to each other’s nuclear capabilities. India’s application for NSG membership and its potential consequences will inevitably touch a raw nerve in Pakistan, its traditional rival in the region.

“As Pakistan is not willing to see an enlarging gap in nuclear power with India, a nuclear race is a likely outcome. This will not only paralyse regional security, but also jeopardise China’s national interests,” said the commentary titled “India mustn’t let nuclear ambitions blind itself”.

“Last week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a diplomatic journey, travelling halfway across the world with his top goal to garner support for his country’s entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)” ahead of the plenary meeting of the group expected to be held in Seoul on June 24.

“The US and some NSG members have given a push to India’s membership bid, but the reported opposition from most countries, especially China, seems to have irritated India,” it said.