The rise of China as a dominant economic and strategic force adds complexity, creates competition, and "hampers" India's efforts to be a natural leader for the Global South, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said on Sunday. Delivering the Gen Bipin Rawat memorial lecture in Delhi, he also said that in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's clarion call for 'Viksit Bharat 2047', lies an "opportunity for us to seek our rightful place in the emerging global security scenario". In his address, the Army chief also made a veiled reference to the proximity between China and Pakistan, and said that today the "near absolute collusivity" has "further compounded the threat". On March 8, Gen Dwivedi, in a veiled reference to China and Pakistan, had said there is a "high degree of collusivity," which must be accepted. "What it means, as far as I am concerned, is that the two-front threat is a reality," he had said in response to a question on the proximity between China and Pakistan. In his lecture o