India’s Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, who is on a three-day visit to Bhutan, held meetings with the Bhutanese monarch, the prime minister and the foreign minister, at a time when several reports have pointed to a recent troop buildup by the Chinese army near Doklam.
This comes more than a month after the standoff at Doklam – lasting 72 days – ended, as both India and China agreed to withdraw their troops from the trijunction on the borders of India, China and Bhutan.
Various reports claim that the number of Chinese troops stationed at the forward posts near Doklam has increased lately.
An Economic Times report points out that this increased Chinese troop presence could “be an attempt by PLA to show off its strength”, as it comes just before the Chinese Communist Party Congress, scheduled for this month, where President Xi Jinping is expected to be re-elected.
The report further pointed out Bhutan’s worries regarding the delay in its boundary negotiations with China. There has reportedly been no word from China on the scheduling of the 25th round of China-Bhutan negotiations, supposed to be held this year.
Notably, Jaishankar’s visit to Bhutan is the first by a high-level Indian official after the standoff came to an end.
Among the issues which are speculated to have come up during Jaishankar’s talks with the Bhutanese officials are the Doklam issue, along with the impact of GST on the Bhutanese economy.
Indian and Chinese troops had been locked in an intense face-off at the border trijunction with Bhutan since June. The trouble began when India objected to China building a road in the disputed Doklam trijunction. This concern was also echoed by the Royal Bhutanese Army.
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