India vs China

Yeah, the Indians got trashed pretty badly. But that was in the 60s. We are talking about a very different India & China.

China would still have trouble moving it's massive army around, they got the force projection of a throw pillow.

India has picked and chosen the best gear from Russia and the US so they already beat the Chinese on that front but I'm not sure if they have the experience or logistics to fight a two front war with China and Pakistan.

Dunno. China was poured quite a few resources into modernizing its army lately, though they are far from world-class.

They have but most of their new stuff is either a knockoff of something Western or some really mediocre homegrown design.

True but, while most of their stuff likely wouldn't fare well against countries like the US or Russia, they'd probably cause some serious damage to the Indian Armed Forces. Which, while improved compared to past decades, is still a Third World army.

However, we do not know what their state will be in 50-80 years. Which is probably how long it'll take for such a war to happen. If it ever happens.

edited 27th Aug '14 10:47:24 AM by LogoP

In a war like this (likely triggered by another India/Pakistan war, or mutual interests in Burma) I think China still has the advantage in terms of the manpower at their disposal, and the ability to produce their own weaponry (India's gotten better at this, but they're still dependent on a lot of imports from Russia, Britain, etc). People have been talking about the naval side, but I'm not sure that's going to matter much—most of China and India's interests in the area are on land, and most of their military spending is focused on their armies. This is going to be an infantry or infantry and tank slogging match, and I'm not sure there's a clear winner. China can reach India's major political and industrial centres more easily than the Indians can reach China's, but even then, not without a lot of hard fighting, that I'm not sure they'd be prepared to do, especially given that this is likely to be either a) a border war, or b) a war to protect China's ally, Pakistan.

In short, China has the advantage but I don't think there's a clear—and certainly not an easy—winner.

If such a war is ever to be fought, it'll likely take place on mountain terrain. Thus, naval warfare will be negligible.

Of course, if things get too out of hand, there's always the nuclear option.

edited 27th Aug '14 12:00:03 PM by LogoP

Third. World. Military? India? I'll let the military experts on the forum dispute that, because if I did, I'd be here all day.

As for India versus China, it won't be a cakewalk for China. India's focus has been on them for two decades. As for the 62 war, my grandfather fought in that particular conflict. It was a surprise attack (this after Nehru was trying to be friends with Beijing) and Pakistan had always been the focus til then. Once India realized what was happening, they were able to stem the flow, but it took time because Indian logistics wasn't great back then. The idea that China can replicate that though? Isn't happening.

China won't fight for Pakistan. They didn't in 71, when they had little to lose, and they definately won't now, when they have much more to lose.

edited 27th Aug '14 12:03:54 PM by FFShinra

The naval warfare shouldn't be totally discounted, if either navy is able to project itself enough to frighten off shipping to their enemy it would do damage, and if the Indians got in position to strike at China in the South China Sea it could do some damage, ballistic missile subs can go a long way to, if the Indians are able to hit Beijing it could be a massive blow even if just politically.

Any such war would be in the Himalayas, so it would be a slow one, giving time for economic war at sea to do damage.

Two countries to consider are Nepal and Bhutan, they control enough of the Himalayas that one side or the other might decide to try and Belgium them, perhaps with similar results (with Nepal it could get relay similar, seeing as we Brits have interests there).

India's navy is also packing BrahMos cruise missiles and in a few years they'll have BrahMos-II. If those things have the US Navy properly scared I can't imagine China's boats will be able to stop them.

edited 27th Aug '14 12:16:20 PM by LeGarcon

India's military is currently in the middle of a modernization cycle - in a big way. They strongly remind me of the USSR circa 1930, actually: they're doing everything to boost production and the quality of their war machine; if there's a hot piece of equipment they're buying it and if there isn't then they're building it. But there's nothing "Third World" about the Indian military. They also learned their military tradition from the British, which means they're coming from a tradition of loyal service to a democratic state and some serious professionalism.

India is not to be fucked with. It took Britain hundreds of years to tame the place, and Indian soldiers were some of the most effective troops of the British imperial state. Indians have been pwning n00bs since the Indus Valley Civilization and they ain't stopping now.

Besides, the place is a nightmare to occupy. Britain was only able to keep it relatively quiet through a set of historical circumstances which no longer exist.

edited 27th Aug '14 12:20:00 PM by Achaemenid

China is Pakistan's biggest military backer for a reason.

That doesn't mean China will invade India if they have a fight.

I don't think anybody's said they for sure would. The fact of the matter is that neither India nor China has much to gain by fighting one another. An India/Pakistan conflict is one of the few things that would even stand a chance of starting an India/China war. Keep in mind that I'm not saying it would start a war, just that it's one of the few circumstances under which a war is even possible.

A conflict between them seems unlikely for now. The future between them will depend on the BRICS' success.

Indeed, BRICS has a bright future ahead of them, especially with all the great things the R is doing lately (and which C have been doing to a lesser extent, but over a longer period of time already).

edited 27th Aug '14 7:35:28 PM by entropy13