National Interests and Interdependence: China, India and the Case of the Yarlung Zangbo - Brahmaputra River

　　ABSTRACT: This paper reviews the literature on transboundary river issues between India and China. It identifies the respective interests of China and India with regard to their shared river system, and argues that there are both similarities and differences in these interests. These differences mean that while India and China are highly interdependent, this interdependence is asymmetric, the two sides having different sensitivities, and regularly experiencing conflict. In negotiating settlement of this dispute, China should link the transboundary river issue with the Sino-India border dispute and further link the sharing of hydrological information and the development of water resources.