An Assessment of Ambassador Luo Jialun’s Mission to India
Luo Jialun (1897– 1969) was the first Ambassador of the Republic of China to India. In his tenure as Ambassador to India (1947– 9), he had intensive interactions with leaders of newly independent India. He was also often consulted for his expertise and opinions related to nation building. Unfortunately, his ambassadorship ended in December 1949 after New Delhi decided to recognise the communist-ruled People’s Republic of China and break off diplomatic ties with the Republic of China. Acknowledging that Luo’s diplomatic career in India has not received much publicity, this article tries to establish the significance of his India mission. The article argues that Luo should not be blamed for the severance of diplomatic relations between India and the Republic of China, which was affected by the global and regional systemic changes resulting from the defeat of the Nationalist government in China. Despite the eventual severance of ties, Luo’s passage to India from May 1947 to January 1950 was largely productive. He had relied on his knowledge and experience to fulfil his assignment as an envoy.
China–India Relations: A Premature Strategic Competition between the Dragon and the Elephant
The factors affecting the relationship between China and India can be divided into three categories: structural factors, hard factors, and soft factors. The structural factors are mainly geopolitical factors determined by national strength, geographical features and international status. Hard factors mainly include border conflicts, Tibetan issues, China–Pakistan relations and water disputes, which are difficult to solve and highly sensitive. Soft factors include a trade imbalance, visa issues, different notions of history, strategic differences, and the relationship between the two countries on the international stage. These three kinds of factors are differentiated. Their importance and influence on China–India relations are also changing. Geopolitical factors have begun to play more important role in the bilateral relationship of the two rising countries in the past few years, leading to their strategic competition. This competition has grown despite the fact that the two countries have not yet achieved a status as leaders of world politics. This premature strategic competition will hinder the development of the two countries and will make the “Asian century” hard to realize. For the security and interests of both nations and Asia as a whole, China and India must establish a more stable geopolitical relationship, promote bilateral cooperation in the field of hard and soft factors, and find opportunities for cooperation in new areas and spaces. Finally, China and India need to build a new type of power relations.
Women and fascism
This seminal book challenges the common assumption that fascism is a misogynist movement which has tended to exclude women. Using examples from Germany, Italy and France, Durham analyses the rise of women in fascist organizations across Europe from the early twenties to the present. Unusually, however, the author focuses on British fascism and in doing so he offers valuable new perspectives on fascist attitudes to women. Offering interesting examples of women training in armed combat, and more generally as voters and members of fascist organizations, he highlights women's relationship to fascist policies on birth rate, abortion and eugenics.