New Delhi, Nov. 30 -- After this year's shocking turn in India-US relations, many argued that India must tilt towards China to counterbalance America. It is true that we have ended up becoming geopolitically more dependent on the United States than the US is on us.

However, there are at least three problems with the 'tilt to China' argument. One, it is the US that has what India needs for its development and is prepared to trade, albeit with tariffs. China, on the other hand, is bent on exporting only finished goods and does not really believe in two-way trade. Two, Beijing will accept India's tilt only on its own imperious Middle Kingdom terms. And three, India has unresolved direct and indirect boundary disputes with China that put a h...