China's approach to India same as Russia's to Ukraine, says Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi, January 2

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said China is trying to do to India what Russia has been demanding of Ukraine.

In an interview with actor-turned-politician Kamal Hasaan, Rahul said, “By doing what it has done to Ukraine, Russia has conveyed it would not accept that Ukrainians have a strong relationship with the West. Russia has basically told Ukraine that if it has a strong relationship with the West, its geography would be altered. That is the exact same principle that can be applied in India.”

“The Chinese are telling us to be careful…that they can alter our geography. Through their actions, they are telling us that they would enter Ladakh, enter Arunachal…I can see is them building a platform for that type of an approach,” Rahul said.

Rahul said he wanted the country to be aware of the fact that there were real problems at the border and those issues were connected to what was going on inside the country.

“When Indians fight Indians, when economy is weak and when there is joblessness, our external opponents take advantage of the situation,” Rahul said.

He said the government was not comfortable sharing problems with the media, but it could at least trust the Opposition parties. “But the government continues to ignore the Opposition,” Rahul lamented.

The former Congress president said while the West would never be able to match China in the production of goods, India could. “To become a manufacturing hub, a country needs young population and a large base of educated people, and India has both. So, as an Indian, I think there is a huge opportunity to become like China, the producer of the world,” Rahul added.