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1 [1] (August 9, 2017)

handle is hein.crs/crsmthmbcdq0001 and id is 1 raw text is: CRS INSIGHT China-India Border Tensions at Doka La August 9, 2017 (IN10748) Related Author Bruce Vaughn Bruce Vaughn, Specialist in Asian Affairs (baughn0crs bc gov, 7-3144) Recent border tensions between India and China may be indicative of a new phase of heightened Sino-Indian rivalry. This rivalry is manifesting itself not only along the two nations' 2,167-mile-long disputed Himalayan border, but also throughout South Asia and the broader Indian Ocean littoral region. Intensified frictions raise the potential for open conflict and could serve as an impetus for further U.S.-India strategic cooperation that could have implications for China. An issue for Congress is whether to call on the Administration to put forth a strategy and report on this strategic development. The Situation at Doka La Border nins wn hina n Indi escalated in mid-June 2017 as China extended an unpaved road on the Doka La Plateau on the disputed border between China and Bhutan, high in the Himalayas. Chinese road-building activity was first revealed by a Royal Bhutan Army Patrol that sought to dissuade the Chinese from continuing. Indian military personnel subsequently moved to the border area. Doka La ilocated in territory disputed by Bhutan and China to the north of the Siliguri Corridor. The corridor, also known as the chicken's neck, links central India with its seven northeastern states. It is approximately 20 miles wide at its narrowest part. Chinese control of the corridor would isolate 45 million Indians in an area the size of the United Kingdom. Bhutan does not have diplomatic relations with China but does have a special relationship with India based on a 1949 Trraty of Friendship, which gives India a guiding influence over Bhutan's defense and foreign affairs. The treaty was revised in 2007 to give Bhutan a greater level of autonomy. With a population of less than 1 million, Bhutan is dwarfed by India (1.3 billion) and China (1.4 billion). The Doka La border tensions mounted while Prime Minist er Modi traveld o Washington, DC, to meet with President Trump. China may have been motivated to signal displeasure over developing ties between India and the United States. History of Border Tensions China and India fought a month-long border war in late 1962. The conflict occurred days after the Cuban missile crisis occupied the United States. The war was a humiliating d f o, rni an f Indi le r wih an of