- Sputnik International
Asia
Find top stories and features from Asia and the Pacific region. Keep updated on major political stories and analyses from Asia and the Pacific. All you want to know about China, Japan, North and South Korea, India and Pakistan, Southeast Asia and Oceania.

Here to Stay: Standoff Ends, but China to Maintain Military Presence in Doklam

© AP Photo / Zha Chunming/XinhuaIn this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops march past military vehicles Sunday, July 30, 2017 as they arrive for a military parade to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the founding of the PLA on Aug. 1 at Zhurihe training base in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops march past military vehicles Sunday, July 30, 2017 as they arrive for a military parade to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the founding of the PLA on Aug. 1 at Zhurihe training base in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region - Sputnik International
Subscribe
The high-altitude standoff between China and India on the Doklam Plateau may have come to an end, but the military buildup in the region will continue. The Chinese Defense Ministry announced on Thursday that they would beef up patrols and garrisons in Doklam to "safeguard national sovereignty and security."

The Doklam Plateau went from a remote, virtually-uninhabited mountain range along the disputed border of China and Bhutan to one of the most important geopolitical sites in the world overnight, when on June 16 Chinese soldiers and construction workers arrived to build a road through the plateau.

India rushed to defend their ally Bhutan's territorial claim, and years of tensions between the two most populous nations in the world suddenly exploded. Both sides talked tough, threatening and insulting one another for 10 tense weeks, even expressing a desire to go to war at times — and then on August 28, both sides pulled back with barely a comment.

(File) In this May 5, 2013 file photo, Chinese troop hold a banner which reads, You've crossed the border, please go back, in Ladakh, India - Sputnik International
China Hopes India to Prevent Future Border Standoffs Like Doklam

The terms of the disengagement have not been made public yet, and questions remain, including whether or not the road China wished to build will be constructed. However, the Chinese Defense Ministry made it clear that China is not giving up on Doklam.

"The Chinese military will continue to carry out its mission and responsibilities, strengthen its patrols and garrisons in the Donglang [the Chinese term for the region] area and resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security," Defense Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqing said.

"In light of the changes in the situation on the ground, Chinese border forces will carry out adjustments to deployments." Ren did not elaborate as to what those adjustments might be.

A man walks inside a conference room used for meetings between military commanders of China and India, at the Indian side of the Indo-China border at Bumla, in the northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, November 11, 2009 - Sputnik International
'Obscure' Pact on Doklam Does Not Guarantee Chinese Compliance - Indian Experts

Unsurprisingly, neither side framed their retreat as blinking or backing down. "We remind India to learn the lessons from this incident, tangibly abide by the historical treaties and the basic principles of international law, and to meet China halfway, jointly guard the peace and tranquility of the border areas, and promote a healthy development of bilateral military relations," said Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian during the Wednesday press conference announcing the withdrawal.

"Our principled position is that agreements and understandings reached on boundary issues must be scrupulously respected," replied the Indian Ministry of External Affairs in a statement the same day.

The disengagement came just days before the beginning of the ninth BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) summit in Xiamen, China. Leaders from the five emerging economies, which have met annually every year since 2009, will discuss economic and geopolitical concerns. 

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) gestures while talking with China's President Xi Jingping during the BRICS leaders' meeting with the BRICS Business Council at the Taj Exotica hotel in Goa on October 16, 2016 - Sputnik International
Modi to Visit China for BRICS Summit Amid Uncertainty of Doklam Pact

BRICS was initially formed as a counterpoint to the economic and political dominance of the United States; to create alternatives to Western-dominated institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank and challenge American monopolies in industries like information technology.

Although the BRICS have never been known for their close ties, the Doklam stand-off is arguably the largest dispute between any member states since the organization's foundation. India and China are also the two largest and fastest-growing economies in BRICS, with their combined economies making up 78 percent of the gross domestic product of the five nations.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала