In A Remote Himalayan Corner, Tensions Rise Between India And China

Updated at 10:50 a.m. July 11 In a cold, isolated Himalayan plateau where three countries converge, an old rivalry is heating up. New Delhi and Beijing are locked in heated verbal exchanges over what each sees as encroachment onto a particularly sensitive spot: the tri-junction where India, China, and Bhutan converge. All three are parties to the simmering dispute. Tensions flared in mid-June, when China began constructing a road in the disputed Doklam Plateau. Both Beijing and Bhutan claim this territory. The Bhutanese note that the process of the boundary settlement is still under negotiation, and the status quo cannot be changed. The tiny Himalayan country turned to India, its long-time ally, for help. "India is de facto responsible for Bhutan's security," explains Sameer Patil, the director of Gateway House, an Indian foreign policy think tank. "China's territorial incursions in the Bhutanese territory threaten Bhutanese — and therefore Indian — security." Not far from the plateau