By Shen Dingli
China, the US and India are all key actors in the international community. Chinese leaders used to say that China should make a significant contribution to all mankind. Most Americans view their country as the most important one in the world. Indian leaders long believed that India, China, the US and the former Soviet Union were the four greatest countries under the sun.
China, through 30 years of effort, has made significant progress. Yet the US felt threatened by this, and thus allied with India, providing it with aid on nuclear energy and other fields. Since India refuses to pledge not to further develop nuclear weapons, the US took the lead in boycotting cooperation in nuclear technology with India. But things changed last year.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that last year's India-US civil nuclear agreement was a milestone in the two countries' relationship, and in order to press for the US to ensure the full implementation of the agreement, he would persuade US President Barack
Obama to further relax the limitations on transferring civil nuclear technology to India.
The motives and consequences of the last US government's strategy of US-India nuclear cooperation is clear – to contain China, regardless of nonproliferation.
However, in doing so, the US only damaged its own interests in nonproliferation. The US has not yet adjusted its mentality to see China's development as an opportunity for itself. That's why it always adopts contradictory policies, merely raising other countries' doubts and fears.
India may not feel good at China's rise, and warming Sino-US relations make it feel left out. India has to and is willing to ally with the US, so as not to lag further behind China. But it may not be necessarily willing to pay the price.
Many Chinese are antipathic to a closer India-US relationship, especially when the two countries attempt to ally against China. But we should not underestimate India's foreign policy independence, since India will not be willing to merely be a sidekick to the US.
In addition, Chinese should not forget that India gave China a helping hand when China was threatened by SARS in 2003, and that at the UN Security Council in 1999, India supported China in condemning the US-led NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia.
The relations among China, the US and India seem complicated, but this does not necessarily have to be the case. The three nations can complement one another.
It's normal that countries compete with each other, but the point is that it should be benign competition. If the US really needs to cooperate with India to develop civil nuclear energy, it should be under the motive of improving current nonproliferation institutions, not seeking an advantage over China.
China and the US also have civil nuclear cooperation, but it is in line with existing international norms. China welcomes an improving China-US relationship, in which the two sides feel proud of each other's achievements, and are willing to think about the other's security interests. We also hope India can be excited by, rather than feeling pressure about, an improving and stable China-US relationship.
Meanwhile, China should relax about Singh's visit to the US. Good India-US relations are conducive not only to both countries, but also to the world peace.
As long as China adheres to peaceful development with other countries, it will be able to create an ideal situation where everyone wins.
The author is professor and executive dean of the Institute of International Studies and director.of Center for American Studies at Fudan University. 
