Their border too

Indo-Bhutan relations should not become a casualty

In spite of discreet efforts from the Indian government to tone down the border confrontations between Indian and Chinese troops, the story has continued to stay in the headlines. Some such clashes are inevitable as both countries ramp up infrastructure spending on their respective sides of the border. A more sensible and less extreme approach must be devised that ensures that these incidents do not poison Indo-Chinese relations more generally. As the foreign secretary reportedly said, such incidents have happened before, and both governments will have to continue to manage their fallout. 

However, there is one additional wrinkle to this particular confrontation that must be taken into account: The fact that some of the areas in question are, in fact, in dispute between China and the Kingdom of Bhutan. Beijing has already chosen to use this as a club with which to beat New Delhi. Worse, it may use this as a handle to introduce a wedge into the very close relations between India and Bhutan. The makers of Indian foreign policy must be very careful to ensure that this does not happen. Naturally, it is up to Thimphu to make its own foreign policy, as has been the case for some time. But the Indian and Bhutanese economies are unusually interdependent, and the social and cultural links very close. The administration in Bhutan also frequently relies on capacity provided by New Delhi. Thus, in spite of whatever China’s diplomats might hint at, it is not surprising that India and Bhutan see such disputes similarly. 

But New Delhi must also remember that public opinion in its neighbours is a real and relevant force, and must not be treated with cavalier disregard. Such disregard in the past has led to avoidable crises; India’s diplomats are striving to recover lost ground in Nepal, for example. If Bhutan is inaccurately painted as being merely a puppet of India’s foreign policy, then there will undoubtedly be public pressure in the kingdom to demonstrate otherwise. The consequences of such pressure will not be to New Delhi’s liking. It must be doubly careful, therefore, to ensure that it does not appear in the eyes of the world, and especially of Bhutan’s people, to be arrogating to itself the right to make decisions for Thimphu. After all, Thimphu’s position on the border dispute dovetails with that of India because of shared interests, not because of any untoward pressure from New Delhi. 

China has sought, over the past decade, to wean away from India’s orbit many of the countries in its immediate neighbourhood. In some, such as the Maldives, it has been partially successful; in others, such as Sri Lanka, it has faced political setbacks. It is vitally important that Bhutan not be added to this list of countries. More than a decade ago, India reset relations with Bhutan on the basis of mutual respect and genuine friendship. These principles should continue to be paramount today.