ABSTRACT
Historically, the rise of any power has always been accompanied by turmoil, upheavals and, often, war. The 21st century is witnessing the ascent of not one but two powers — China and India. In a unique way, these next-door neighbours are both nuclear powers, they compete for dwindling energy resources and seek influence in the same economic and geopolitical space. Only the naïve would deny what the basic tenets of political realism predict: that the primacy of national interest and an imbalance of economic and military power heighten chances of conflict, especially when a democracy and a totalitarian state are involved.
