China Marching with India: India's Cold War Advocacy for the People's Republic of China at the United Nations, 1949–1971
Speaker: Anatol Klass, Ernest May Fellow in History & Policy, International Security Program
Throughout the period when the People's Republic of China (PRC) was formally excluded from the United Nations (1949-1971), the India was a constant advocate for unrecognized Chinese government at the international organization, even as relations between the two countries deteriorated in the run-up to and aftermath of the 1962 border war. Based on sources from the PRC's Ministry of Foreign Affairs archives, this presentation explores the nature of PRC-India cooperation over United Nations affairs during the Cold War including the tensions caused by the two nations' competing conceptions of how the decolonizing world should fit into the international system and who should be at the helm. Despite these disagreements, the Cold War UN provided a setting where geopolitical tensions and divergent post-colonial visions could be sublimated into meaningful international cooperation.
Open to Harvard ID Holders Only: Admittance will be on a first come–first served basis. Coffee & Tea Provided.