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Foreign secretary begins Bhutan visit, Doklam situation expected to be discussed
Foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra began his three-day visit to Bhutan from Wednesday at the invitation of his counterpart Pema Choden
Development, cooperation and the situation in the sensitive Doklam region are among the issues that are expected to figure in foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra’s discussions during his three-day visit to Bhutan from Wednesday.
Kwatra, who is visiting Bhutan at the invitation of his counterpart Pema Choden, flew to the historic town of Paro, west of the Capital Thimphu, on Wednesday. Besides holding bilateral consultations, the two foreign secretaries will co-chair the India-Bhutan development cooperation talks on the 12th Five Year Plan.
He will also meet Bhutan’s top leaders during the visit, which is part of the tradition of regular high-level exchanges, the Indian embassy said on Twitter. The visit is also an opportunity for the two sides to discuss the gamut of bilateral ties, it said.
Bhutan’s foreign ministry said Kwatra will meet Prime Minister Lotay Tshering and foreign minister Tandi Dorji.
India has extended economic aid for Bhutan’s socio-economic development since the Himalayan country launched its five-year plans in the early 1960s. India continues to be Bhutan’s principal development partner and its contribution of ₹4,500 crore for the 12th Five Year Plan constitutes 73% of Bhutan’s total external grant component.
Though much of the focus will be on the development partnership, people familiar with developments said Kwatra’s visit is an opportunity for India to discuss the situation in the strategic Doklam region, the scene of a 73-day standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in 2017.
Recent reports and satellite imagery have suggested that China is again ramping up infrastructure development in the sensitive area, which is of strategic significance for the security of India’s northeastern region. These developments have come at a time when Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a standoff in Ladakh sector.
The 2017 standoff at the Doklam tri-junction began after China attempted to extend a road in an area claimed by Bhutan. India strongly opposed the construction and the face-off was resolved after several rounds of talks.
In October 2021, Bhutan and China agreed on a “three-step roadmap” to expedite negotiations to resolve their boundary dispute. Bhutan and China share a border of more than 400 km and the two sides have had more than two dozen rounds of talks to address the issue.
Kwatra’s visit to Bhutan comes more than two months after the Royal Bhutan Army’s chief operations officer, Lt Gen Batoo Tshering, travelled to India to discuss defence cooperation.
