(TibetanReview.net, Apr11’21) – China and Bhutan have agreed to “continue to maintain peace and stability” on their border, following their latest meeting held in Kunming, capital of China’s Yunnan Province, from Apr 6 to 9, with Chinese analysts claiming this new arrangement could “upset” India, according to the eurasiantimes.com Apr 11.
The 10th round of expert-level meetings on boundary issues between Beijing and Thimphu were led on the Chinese side by Hong Liang, Director-General of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Foreign Ministry.
A roadmap for speeding up China-Bhutan border negotiations was also discussed, the report cited the Chinese foreign ministry as saying.
Chinese experts have taken the talk as Bhutan’s negation of what they have called India’s claim of “China threat” and managing the border affairs independently.
The report cited Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, as telling China’s official Global Times newspaper that Bhutan’s “move will upset some Indians who think Bhutan is under India’s control and it will be seen as a signal of breaking away”.
In Jun 2017, India moved in to stop Chinese troops from building a road inside the Bhutanese territory of Doklam which has strategic significance to all three countries. The ensuing standoff between Indian and Chinese armies lasted more than 70 days, with China constantly threatening war to end the impasse.
