India to host Bhutan king amid China border tension

India will host the Bhutan king from Monday, days after Bhutanese Prime Minister Lotay Tshering said Beijing has an equal say in finding a resolution to the dispute to trijunction boundary, which put New Delhi at discomfort.

King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will be on an official visit to India from April 3 to 5. He will be accompanied by foreign affairs minister Lyonpo Dr Tandi Dorji and senior officials of the Bhutan government.

For decades the Bhutan monarchy has been among the staunchest supporters of the Indian government, working as a factor of stability in South Asia against hegemonist designs and guarantor of security in the Himalayan region, including against the insurgents from the Northeast.


''It is not up to Bhutan alone to solve the problem,'' Tshering had said in a recent interview with Belgian daily La Libre. ''There are three of us. There is no big or small country, there are three equal countries, each counting for a third.''

"A lot of information is circulating in the media about Chinese facilities in Bhutan. We are not making a [big] deal about them because they are not in Bhutan. We have said it categorically, there is no intrusion as mentioned in the media. This is an international border and we know exactly what belongs to us," Tshering had said.

"We are not experiencing major border problems with China, but some territories have not yet been demarcated," said the prime minister, adding, ''After one or two more meetings, we will probably be able to draw a dividing line.''

India has not reacted to this interview but the statement definitely is not a matter of comfort for India, ET earlier reported. New Delhi has strong reservations on China extending its footprint in Doklam since the plateau lies close to the Siliguri corridor or chicken's neck. The Indian Army has been closely watching the situation in Doklam and monitoring Chinese activities there.