Modi’s Bhutan Visit Signals India’s Support Amidst China Border Talks
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Bhutan next week to reiterate New Delhi’s commitment to Thimphu in border talks with China that could have implications for India.
Asked why Modi was visiting Bhutan, a government source said: “The message is very clear. We will support you.”
A new government has been formed in Bhutan, sources said, adding that Modi’s visit will confirm India’s deep respect for its neighbour.
“Our economic, diplomatic and military relations with Bhutan are unlike our relations with other countries and this visit will reaffirm it,” said another source. Sources said Modi will arrive in Bhutan on March 21 and spend the night as flights cannot take off from Paro after 12 noon due to cloud cover. and noise. They added that Modi’s visit was inaugurated by Bhutan’s new Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Togai’s visit to India.
The two Prime Ministers met on Thursday evening and reviewed the progress in various areas of bilateral relations, including infrastructure development, connectivity, energy, energy efficiency, transit people to people and development cooperation.
They also reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen the special and unique India-Bhutan relationship.
The incoming Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for India’s role as a reliable, trustworthy and effective partner in Bhutan’s development projects, an official statement said. On behalf of the King of Bhutan, Togai invited Prime Minister Modi to visit Bhutan next week.
India is concerned about Bhutan-China talks
In January, Army Chief Manoj Pande said India and Bhutan had discussed security concerns and that its troops were monitoring border communications between Thimphu and Beijing.
China and Bhutan agreed that in addition to establishing diplomatic relations, there should also be speedy negotiations on territorial demarcation and settlement. These negotiations will have an impact on India’s strategic objectives as the area being negotiated is close to the India-Bhutan border and may be under Chinese control.
When CFDRA first spoke in 2019, China and Bhutan were close to reaching an agreement on the Doklam dispute. China’s Line of Control in the disputed area becomes the operational boundary of the two countries.
Although no formal agreement has been signed in this regard, China has taken control of the area and built a number of bilateral settlements on the Bhutanese border near the third junction with India.
As CFDRA said in October, China claims about 764 square kilometers of land in western and central Bhutan. This dispute began when China occupied Tibet in the 1950s.
In 1959, China controlled eight regions of Bhutan without recognizing the “border line” between Tibet and Bhutan. Since then, negotiations have continued over three disputed territories: the Jakalong and Pasamlung region in northern Bhutan, and the disputed Doklam region in western Bhutan.
In 2017, India and China were involved in a standoff at the Doklam border. After a dispute with India, China claimed ownership of the Sakten Wildlife Reserve, located in eastern Bhutan and bordering Arunachal Pradesh.
In India’s view, this is a ploy to pressure Bhutan, as China is willing to surrender its claim to the protected area if Thimphu agrees to hand over Doklam.
Doklam is a plateau with an area of 89 square kilometers and a width of less than 10 kilometers, overlooking the Siliguri Corridor, the gateway to the Northeast region, which is of great strategic importance for India. Since the late 1990s, China has occupied a small amount of land in Doklam and started building roads. In 2017, they began road construction on the strategic Jaffrey Ridgeline.
On June 18, 2017, Indian troops entered the area and built a human wall to prevent Chinese miners and workers from carrying out construction work.
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