New Delhi: Indian President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday said the security concerns of India and Bhutan are indivisible and mutual as he expressed deep appreciation to the Himalayan kingdom’s support in resolving the recent 73-day military stand-off with China on Bhutan’s Doklam plateau.
The Bhutanese royal couple are on a four-day visit to India, the first since the military standoff was resolved two months ago. Besides meeting Kovind on Wednesday, the Bhutanese king held talks with Indian foreign minister Sushma Swaraj and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“The President said that security concerns of India and Bhutan are indivisible and mutual,” a statement from the Kovind’s office said.
“He conveyed deep appreciation for the King of Bhutan’s personal involvement and guidance and the support provided by Bhutan in addressing the recent situation in the Doklam area,” the statement said.
“He added that the manner in which both India and Bhutan stood together to address the situation in the Doklam area is a clear testimony to our friendship,” the statement added.
India and China’s troops were locked in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam, a tri-junction between China, India and Bhutan border near Sikkim, from 16 June.
The stand-off was triggered when Chinese troops started constructing a road on the plateau that Bhutan claims as its territory. Indian troops stationed in Bhutan under a special security arrangement intervened to keep Chinese troops at bay. India said the action to construct the road changed the status quo and expressed concern that the road will allow China to cut off access to India’s north-eastern states.
The stand-off—seen as the worst between India and China in two decades—ended with Indian and Chinese troops pulling out on 28 August.
What set the Doklam confrontation apart from the previous India-China confrontations was that this time, the Asian neighbours were tussling over territory claimed by a third country.
The Indian view is that New Delhi and Beijing had agreed in 2012 that boundaries that fall between India and China and a third country—i.e. on a tri-junction—would be resolved taking into account the views of the third country.
According to President Kovind, India and Bhutan share “exemplary bilateral relations.”
“Our relations are unique and special. Our bilateral ties are based on utmost trust and understanding. We should do everything to make it a model of bilateral cooperation, which will be noted by others in the neighbourhood,” he said.