China is making new territorial claims not only along its disputed boundary with India, but also along the undisputed stretch of its border with Bhutan.
Even as China’s expansionist moves in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh resulted in a military stand-off along its disputed boundary with India, the communist country also made attempts to make new territorial claims in eastern Bhutan.
Thimphu lodged a strong protest with Beijing after the representative of China sought to block a grant from Global Environment Facility (GEF) for the Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary in Trashigang District of Bhutan. Beijing’s representative at the virtual meeting of the GEF council said that the sanctuary was in an area, which was part of the disputed territory between China and Bhutan and was “on the agenda of China-Bhutan boundary talks”. China also opposed grant of GEF fund to Bhutan for the sanctuary.
Though Thimphu and Beijing have been holding negotiations to settle the boundary dispute since 1984, the territorial row between the two nations was limited to 764 sq kms of areas – 269 sq kms in west and 495 sq kms in north-central Bhutan. But China never registered any claim on Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary or any other area in eastern Bhutan, diplomatic sources in New Delhi said.
Bhutan rejected the claim made by China at the GEF council meet. “(The) Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary is an integral and sovereign territory of Bhutan and at no point during the boundary discussions between Bhutan and China has it featured as a disputed area,” noted Thimphu, according to the records of proceedings of the GEF council meeting.
Bhutan and China held 24 rounds of boundary negotiations till August 2016.
The negotiations, however, remained stalled over the past four years, as Beijing refused to schedule the 25th round after Thimphu sided with New Delhi during the 72-day-long stand-off between the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at Doklam Plateau in western Bhutan.