Comment by lenkite
Unfortunately, our positions differ based on international boundaries ratified before independence. (Also, laughable that PRC sticks to ROC claims on one-hand, while it also simultaneously denies them on the other hand - aka Taiwan)
Let me address the major point that you bring up. PRC lays claim to 125,000 square KM - most of which is currently Indian territory. That is nearly ~8-10x of any other nation that China settled with - well, excluding ROC (Taiwan) - which China has also not "settled" with. Today, dozens of modern nations fit into 125,000 square KM of territory.
India does not need to "educate itself" - it has had over 20 rounds of talks with China recently and China has utterly not budged from claiming the FULL state (along with some adjacent territory too). It is not India, but China that is not willing to concede. If the dispute was merely ~10k sq KM, it would have already been solved. There are some very good reasons behind China's intractable position. This is extraordinarily resource rich territory that is utterly untapped by India due to constitutional protections offered to this state and its indigenous tribals. China, obviously, has no such protective obligations.
But for India, this state is populated by voters, native elected representatives and constitutionally protected indigenous tribes. There is utterly no way voters are going to even acknowledge being associated with China in any way, with utterly zero Chinese ethnicity present. Full ~120k sq km of a bio-diverse, resource-rich and populated-by-voters living in a democratic state for over 75 years, being utterly claimed by China is ridiculous and does not lend itself to any possible "settlement".
E: last reply
TW is not a territory dispute, it's a unsolved civil war, i.e. PRC is not intending to split territory with TW, like other disputes, TW is winner takes all.
What PRC claims from India is not what PRC actually wants. PRCs offered package swap deal with India for decades (and imo continues to be) with India was "east for west". PRC gets 40k sqkm Aksai China claims it currently defacto controls, basically empty land where no one lives. India gets Arunachal Pradesh, i.e. what India defacto controls, the state. AKA just formalize border at where both sides controls, there's no actual PRC interest in AP the state and the people, because is as you recognized ridiculous.
AP just barginning chip for "east for west" swap, same with PRC claims on Tawang that India + western media likes to play up as some Dalai + Tawang super combo to threaten PRC Tibet succession crisis. Reality is Tibet is no longer a restive region, it's been thoroughly securitized and PRC can print their own dalai lama and rule Tibetians as they see fit. It's just another pressure point because India taking 20 rounds of talks and 40+ years have gotten nowhere leaves no option but accept the status quo - which PRC doesn't want, they want to ratify borders - hence pile on pressure via salami slicing for India to accept package deal.
Ultimately I think PRC fine with "east for west". All China wants is their bit of tundra for G219 highway to connect Xinjiang and Tibet. They don't want some full Indian state and the people and the resources, because that's also logistically ridiculous. PRC is not going to go over the Tibetan plateau to mine untapped resources in AP when they have entire Tibetan plateau to mine.
TLDR Indian media keeps insinuating PRC wants all of AP when PRC doesn't, it just wants the border formalized at current occupation/administered areas (i.e. no mass people resettlement needed). Just ratify borders and stop encouraging tibetan exile shenanigans, same way India doesn't like Canada entertaining Khalistanis. no need to go back to pre dalai lama asylum hindi chini bhai bhai, but also no paitence to wait another 20/50/forever years.