It’s business as usual for Japanese, Koreans and Chinese: India-Pak tension
New Delhi. February 28: Even as tension escalates between India and Pakistan following recent air strikes conducted by Indian fighter jets on terrorist’s launch pads inside Pakistan, and subsequent retaliation by the Pakistani side, its business as usual for the people of the oriental countries like Japan, Korea, and China staying in India.
Same goes the story with the communities from other Asian countries, as well as continents.
There has been no cancellation of business or leisure trips to India from these countries, nor are the expats shortening their stays here as they have said they are unmoved of these abrupt developments. They feel that actions by India and Pakistan would remain limited to skirmishes and would never escalate to full-scale or nuclear war even though both the sides are nuclear capable countries.
Nor have there been any alerts or words of caution issues from their respective consulates and embassies or their governments abroad.
Sungsil Park whose son serves in the military in South Korea landed in India recently to meet her brother said that there was nothing to worry about and she had no plans to leave for her country before the scheduled March 3.
“We have North Korea that keeps on threatening of nuclear strikes for so many years and we have been confronting such situations for so long there. In Korea, we people are quite used to such situations and therefore I am not really worried about the ongoing tension between India and Pakistan,” Sungsil said adding that Pakistan is to India what North Korea is to South Korea.
In fact, Koreans are equally concerned about the ongoing meeting between American President Donald Trump and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un in Hanoi, Vietnam which may witness formal announcement on end of age-old Korean war.
Saurabh Sondhi the promoter of Hotel Crossroads with Japanese food specialty restaurant Gohan in Gurugram also confirmed that there no element of worry with Japanese and Korean communities.
“They are brave people and very much focused on what they are for in India. And they are not at all worried amidst ongoing India-Pak situation. They feel that the Indian government will not let any untoward incident happen which will hamper economic growth and partnership with Japan and Korea. Japan too has been through harsh situations in the past. Such incidents can’t move them,” Sondhi said.
Sondhi said that Japanese are in fact planning new investments and setting up more ventures in India.
“Japanese are upbeat on new ventures in India. I have a new restaurant coming up in Gurugram in collaboration with Japanese friends, who have no hiccups or anything like that. We are going ahead with our expansion plans,” he added.
Abhishek Boken, an FRRO and fleet management experts for Japanese expats community in India also said that it was business as usual for Japanese here.
“We have not witnessed any uneasiness amongst the Japanese community who are largely here to work with the corporates. Nor there has been witnessed any cancellation of tickets to India from Japan in the wake of ongoing India-Pakistan tension,” said Boken, the promoter of Meera Samuh Corporate Services offering services to Japanese expats in India.
