With China’s growing belligerence, the border has become a battleground for testing wills and resilience. Analysts say China’s completely unfounded claims initially extended only to Tawang, a part of Arunachal Pradesh, where the sixth Dalai Lama was said to have been born. Since the 2000s, however, China has been claiming Arunachal Pradesh in its entirety. Pertinent to remember, that independent India has been exercising sovereignty over it. Arunachal Pradesh became a union territory in 1972 and a state in 1987. Arunachal Pradesh is also located at the confluence of the international borders of China, Myanmar and Bhutan, giving it strategic importance. This extension of territorial claims indicates a concerted strategy, consistent with China's stance on the East and South China Sea disputes.