'India, China must avoid mutual paranoia'

'India, China must avoid mutual paranoia'

Agence France-Presse, New Delhi

India and China must avoid mutual paranoia and ending up in
"opposing camps" if Asia is to take its place in the world,
Singapore's former premier Lee Kuan Yew was on Tuesday quoted as
saying.

"Whether Asia will take its place in the world...depends on
how both India and China work together as they rise and actively
set out to avoid ending up in opposing camps," Singapore's
founding father said in a lecture on Monday.

Lee's statements reported by The Hindu newspaper echo warnings
from Indian opposition political leaders and analysts that New
Delhi should not be drawn too closely into the U.S. orbit and
must balance that relationship through ties with China.

India's links with the United States have been warming rapidly
amid increasing economic and military ties after the two
countries were on opposite sides of the fence during the Cold
War.

"They (India and China) must not be paranoid and suspicious of
each other in a game of one-upmanship," Lee told an audience that
included Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and ruling Congress party
president Sonia Gandhi.

"Instead they can cooperate and compete economically, and each
improve its performance by using the other's progress as
benchmarks for what they should do better," said Lee, credited
with transforming Singapore into a prosperous high-tech center.

Lee also noted a recent improvement in ties between India and
China whose economies have been growing rapidly. Trade is booming
between the one-time rivals who fought a brief war in 1962.

The rise of India and China was changing the global balance,
Lee said,

"Together, they account for 40 percent of the world's working
age population and 19 percent of the global economy" in
purchasing power parity terms, he said.

"If there are no mishaps by 2050, the U.S., China, India and
Japan will be economic heavyweights, as will Russia if it
converts its revenue from oil and gas into long term value in
infrastructure and non-oil industries," Lee forecast.