It has hardly been a month since the winding of an aggressive stand-off with India at the Sikkim border, and the Chinese army is back to building a road on the Doklam Plateau. The Plateau is claimed by both Beijing and Bhutan as their territory, where India supports Bhutan’s claims.
In June this year, the Indian soldiers crossed the Sikkim border to stop the construction of a Chinese road near the “Chicken’s Neck”, a thin strip that links India to its northeastern states. The conflict ended after 70 days where both the countries accepted to withdraw their troops.
That time, China pulled itself back from the construction. Now, barely 10 kilometres from the stand-off, it is expanding an existing track and is claiming its right over the Doklam plateau.
India backs Bhutan’s claim to the region and has made it clear that it will not tolerate any infrastructure that would allow China access to the Chicken’s Neck.
