The deadly physical clash between China’s PLA and the Indian army in the Galwan valley last month was a watershed moment for bilateral relations and geopolitics in Asia. China’s discarding of decades-long restraint and its violent push to attain tactical territorial advantages at the LAC, mirrored by similar bouts of aggression against other Asian neighbours with which China has outstanding maritime disputes, have thrown the old playbook of ‘competition-cum-cooperation’ out of the window.