September 3rd, New Delhi: The 108 Peace Institute, in collaboration with the Observer Research Foundation, organised an interaction with Dr. Lobsang Sangay reflecting on the forces shaping Tibet’s present and future – from the succession of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Beijing’s growing emphasis on ethnic unity law. The interaction was moderated by Kalpit A Mankikar, a fellow at the Observer Research Foundation based in New Delhi. The event was attended by more than 80 scholars, researchers and policy makers.
During the interaction, Dr. Sangay cautioned India’s efforts on recalibration with China for so many decades. In particular, China’s President Xi Jinping’s participation in the BRICS Summit reignited the same mentality of recalibration with China. Yet, China’s claim of Arunachal Pradesh remains relentless even during the BRICS Summit. Hence, it is historically proven that China doesn’t wish to recalibrate with India.
Dr. Sangay also highlighted the connection between the reincarnation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Ukraine war. China has been prolonging the war between Russia and Ukraine in order to drain the economies of the both countries. Since Russia has three Republics that have been deeply influenced by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Buddhism, China wants to control these Republics to avoid the influence of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Hence, the reincarnation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama is geopolitically significant.
Dr. Sangay emphasised on the containment policy of China on India. Since China wants to become number one in Asia, they don’t want to see a potential nation to challenge their trajectory. Therefore, China has been trying to prevent India from becoming a UN Security Council member; China’s investments in the neighbouring countries also impact India’s growth and China’s close relationship with Pakistan is yet another stumbling block for India.
After the moderator’s moderation, the floor was opened for Q&A. Dr. Sangay exchanged ideas with more than 10 participants who had put forth various questions relating to the theme of the interaction.
At the end, Dr. Sangay highly recommended the audience to read the latest book by His Holiness the Dalai Lama – ‘Voice for the Voiceless’. A copy was also presented to Kalpit as a souvenir.
