India is too independent a great power to be willing to balance against China despite the problems posed by China’s support for Pakistan, the disputed borders, China’s cultivation of India’s close neighbours and a growing rivalry in the Indian Ocean.
The two great powers of Asia have developed a complex relationship as their economic relationship has thickened and as they share interests on some issues such as climate change and Iran and diverge on others.
India too is becoming a more important player in East Asia.
The distrust between Delhi and Beijing is deep, but the likelihood of major conflict remains small.