ABSTRACT
India perceived China’s attempts to exploit Pakistan’s antipathy toward India as a serious challenge to itself. There were two different phases in the US response to the momentous Sino-Indian war of October 1962. The initial phase was marked by emergency arms assistance and political support to India in response to an urgent appeal by the government of India. The second dealt with the possibility of working out an American arms aid program in light of the perceived threat posed by China. There are a number of critical questions raised by the American response to the Sino-Indian conflict, and in particular, the decision to render military, economic, political, and moral support to India. In some Asian conflicts—notably the cases of Korea and Vietnam—the United States was and is directly involved. The American approach to the potentially explosive border dispute between India and China—the two most populous states in the world—exhibited a certain element of paradox.
