India and Bhutan are questioning the new normal’: 

India and Bhutan are questioning the new normal’: 

Context:

• China has settled most of the land boundary issues with most neighboring countries.
• But it still has issues with India and Bhutan and only only reciprocal withdrawal by India and China can ease the Doklam stand-off.

The Issue:

• Bhutan maintains that Doklam is in Bhutanese territory; but China claims the territory.
• However, China is committed through the bilateral agreements of 1988 and 1998 with Bhutan to respect the status quo and not to change the status quo unilaterally.
• China’s actions are in direct violation of agreements with Bhutan and India.
• China is changing the tri-junction unilaterally in violation of such agreements.
• The Chinese are trying to bring down the tri-junction point to Geymochen ridge line between the Siliguri corridor and the Chumbi Valley, which would have hit security.
• There have been 24 rounds of border negotiations between Bhutan and China.
• On June 29, 2017, Bhutan requested China to restore the status quo as of June 16, 2017.
• Any change in the status quo will hurt Bhutan first as it will lose a very strategic territory and it will lose access to India through the Siliguri corridor.
• For Bhutan too there are vital strategic interests involved in any compromise.

Bilateral ties between China and India:

• China is becoming increasingly assertive in pursuit of its global and regional goals. As for example:
• The Belt and Road project aimed at China trying to put together a continental and maritime domain where China is the lead player.
• This is apart from the fact that the project affects Indian sovereignty as it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
• But the rise of China is also taking place simultaneously with the rise of India.
• With China’s want to be the pre-eminent power, India too would like to see a multipolar world. That is the contradiction.
• India-China ties also have positive aspect and there will be an uncertain mix of cooperation and competition and how India manages the relationship will be a big challenge.

Conclusion:

• India needs to persist with the present approach that the border areas remain peaceful and the country needs to ensure that there is requisite deterrence available on the ground to discourage China.