Landlocked Bhutan may be India’s tiniest neighbour, but its strategic importance has grown manifold in circumstances that changed dramatically with the breakout of an India-China border dispute that has been festering for six years since Doklam plateau, near Bhutan, became a contentious area of focus in 2017.
China may have been the elephant in the room as India reaffirmed its ties with the Eastern Himalayan kingdom during the 10-day visit of king Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck. That this is his second visit this year stresses the seriousness with which India is viewing developments in Thimphu as it made a recent move towards Beijing regarding its own border issues with China.
The bank of goodwill accumulated over centuries and the historical ties built when Bhutan was a protectorate of British India might not cut much ice in the changing scenario. Especially so since China has been generous in opening its purse strings, not only in its 10-year-old Belt & Road Initiative, but also in emergency lending of over a trillion dollars to borrower economies hit in post-Covid times and struggling under the weight of infrastructure debt.
The old “we have your back” assurances might mean less at this time, which may be one reason why India has been most receptive to tending to the “entire gamut of bilateral cooperation and regional and global issues of mutual interest” with Bhutan.
China did arouse curiosity in India by stepping up its efforts to resolve its land border dispute with Bhutan while showing no such intent in addressing the bigger issue with India in various border spots after having shown some inclination in settling the issue only around Pangong Tso lake.
What may have raised concerns in India is China’s reported offer of land swap to Bhutan in the clever garb of delimitation and demarcation to derive an advantage in the Doklam area that may allow easier access to the most strategic “chicken’s neck” in West Bengal’s Siliguri that connects the Northeast to mainland India. It is another game of motivated geopolitics that China is playing with Bhutan. Should it be doubted then that the king was brought up to speed on this crucial India-Bhutan-China border issue?
It is against a backdrop of a perceived urgency to strengthen ties that India has decided to step up development assistance to Bhutan, collaborating with it in various projects and sectors covering border infra, rail connectivity, expanding trade with India which is already Thimphu’s largest trading partner, hydropower and green power initiatives.
The accent is also being placed on cross-border rail links with Assam and West Bengal which will represent considerable utility value to a landlocked nation. India has also promised to leave no stone unturned to facilitate tourism with visitors also transiting on the ground with border checkpoint infra to be put up. It must have been sweet music to Bhutanese ears that India is also prepared to open education avenues for aspiring doctors in reserving seats for them in Indian medical colleges in Assam.
The cooperation being given a fillip in a plethora of sectors is a very clear indicator of the importance India attaches to its neighbour. And this may go even beyond the extent to which India has been accommodative in its latest diplomatic moves to reset ties with other neighbouring countries.
