Guwahati: India is standing strong in all its borders; we have got adequate and effective weapon systems installed in our borders. Chief of the Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat said this in Guwahati on Saturday. The CDS was speaking at the Ravi Kant Singh Memorial Lecture Series titled ‘Assam at Cross Roads; Geopolitical Events in its Neighborhood Impacting NE India”, organized by Assam police in Guwahati. The CDS said that the current central government in allowing us to procure whatever weapons is required for the defence of the country. The central government has given emergency powers to the defence services to procure weapons at their levels and no questions are being asked by the government so long the improves are security apparats and national security.
General Rawat also stated that North East is very much important to the mainland India because of its geographic positions. He said that India needs continue to foray in to our neighboring countries with the ‘Sagar” vision of the prime minister, which is security and growth for long. We should continue to move with this mission and should not allow this mission to go back. We just need to make it sure and tell our neighbors that we are here as permanent friends. We are here to engage you on equal terms. We consider all our neighbors as equal partners in the development of this region. So long as we are able to convince our neighbors that in the long term, we will be your friends, General Rawat stated.
Without naming any country of this region, which has increased their proximity with China in recent time CDS Rawat said that China has a habit of using money power and economics to gain popularity in any country, in the short time countries will get monetary advantage from China, but at what cost? The world has seen some of the nations what they have gone through after making friendship with China and if you want to fall in the same trap choice is yours.
The CDS pointed out that areas which is parts of the eastern Himalaya Shares its borders with five nations Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Tibet Autonomous Region of China and Myanmar. The North East is connected to mainland India by a narrow piece of land which we often called the Siliguri corridor or the Chicken neck. This vulnerable neck will remain a cause of concern and we must always ensure that any attempt to disrupt connectivity of the North East with the rest of India will be dealt with firmly in a collective approach to ensure unity and integrity of India.
General Rawat also stressed that the emerging situations in neighboring Myanmar needs to be monitoring closely in the wake of recent developments. The BRI initiative of China in Myanmar, which is Built Road, Rail and Energy corridors in the country and movements of insurgence of the ARACAN Army in the western border of Myanmar. Another immerging area of concern is the continued presence of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh which could be exploited by the radical Islamic groups to form a trouble and undermine peace and security in the Northeastern region of India, SDS Rawat stated. He also pointed out that along with other North Eastern states Assam holds immense geo-political potential to emerge as the gateway to the South East Asia.
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