Army Chief Gen Dwivedi holds talks with Bhutanese military chief

    New Delhi, Jul 1 (PTI) Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi on Tuesday held wide-ranging talks with Bhutan's military chief Lt Gen Batoo Tshering on ways to shore up bilateral defence cooperation against the backdrop of China's military assertiveness in the region.
    Gen Dwivedi began his four-day trip to Bhutan on Monday.
    The Chief of Army Staff held discussions with Lt Gen Tshering, the chief operations officer of the Royal Bhutan Army, to further strengthen military bonds and deepen strategic defence cooperation, according to the Indian Army.
    Gen Dwivedi's visit to Bhutan came amid the evolving regional security scenario and over seven weeks after India's Operation Sindoor targeting terror bases in Pakistani territories.
    He will also interact with senior officials of the Indian Military Training Team (IMTRAT) in Bhutan. The IMTRAT has been playing a crucial role in strengthening military capabilities of the Royal Bhutan Army.
    It is understood that the overall situation in the Doklam plateau as well as Chinese activities in the region figured in the talks between Gen Dwivedi and Lt Gen Tshering.
    The strategic ties between India and Bhutan witnessed an upward trajectory in the last few years in the backdrop of a 73-day face-off between Indian and Chinese troops in Doklam tri-junction in 2017.
    The Doklam plateau is considered an important area for India's strategic interest.
    The standoff at Doklam tri-junction in 2017 began after China tried to extend a road in an area that Bhutan claimed belonged to it.
    India had strongly opposed the construction as it would have impacted its overall security interests.
    The India-China stand-off in the Doklam plateau even triggered fears of larger conflict between the two neighbours. Bhutan had said the area belonged to it and India supported the Bhutanese claim.
    The face-off was resolved following several rounds of talks.
    Bhutan shares an over 400-km-long border with China and the two countries have held a series of boundary talks in a bid to resolve the dispute.
    China and Bhutan are looking at an expeditious resolution of their festering boundary row that could have implications for India's security interests.
    In late 2023, Bhutan's then Foreign Minister Tandi Dorji held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing.
    A Chinese readout on the talks said Bhutan firmly abides by the one-China principle and stands ready to work with China for an early settlement of the boundary issue.
    New Delhi has been keeping a close eye on the negotiations between Bhutan and China on their boundary row as it could have implications for New Delhi's security interests, especially in the Doklam tri-junction.
    China and Bhutan have agreed to expedite and take simultaneous steps to implement a "three-step roadmap to resolve their festering boundary dispute.
    In October 2021, Bhutan and China signed an agreement on the "three-step roadmap" to expedite negotiations to resolve their boundary dispute.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)