New Delhi: China says it is ready to work with Bhutan to conclude the ongoing boundary talks “as soon as possible” and to establish full diplomatic relations with the Himalayan Kingdom. The development also has implications for India.Bhutan’s foreign minister Tandi Dorji was in Beijing on Monday, October 23, to hold talks with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi.“The conclusion of boundary negotiations and the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Bhutan fully serve the long-term and fundamental interests of the country and nation of Bhutan. China is ready to work with Bhutan in the same direction, seize the historic opportunity, complete this important process as soon as possible, and fix and develop China-Bhutan friendly relations in legal form,” a statement put out by the Chinese foreign ministry said.Of the 14 nations with which China shares borders, 12 countries have settled their borders. Bhutan and India are the only two countries with which border disputes still remain.According to the statement, Wang Yi told his Bhutanese counterpart, “China always prioritises neighbourhood diplomacy in its overall diplomacy and adheres to the principle that all countries, big or small, are equals. China respects the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of all countries and the legitimate aspirations and concerns of small and medium-sized countries.”The Bhutanese foreign minister, according to the Chinese statement, said Bhutan and China have enjoyed a traditional friendship, and Bhutan firmly abides by the one-China principle and stands ready to work with China for an early settlement of the boundary issue and advance the political process of establishing diplomatic relations. He also thanked China for “its strong support and assistance to Bhutan”, the statement added.Last month, both countries set up a ‘Joint Technical Group’ (JTG) on the delimitation of the China-Bhutan boundary as part of Beijing’s efforts to speed up the resolution of the boundary issue. In an ‘Expert Group Meeting’ (EGM) held in Beijing in August, both sides had agreed to set up JTG, and to take “simultaneous steps” to expedite the implementation of a ‘three-step roadmap’ that will lead to the demarcation of the boundary.Implications for IndiaChina asserts claims over roughly 764 square kilometres in the northwestern and central regions of Bhutan. Originally, the dispute was part of border negotiations between India and China. However, direct dialogues between China and Bhutan were initiated in 1984. Since then, over 24 rounds of border talks and 12 rounds of expert-level meetings have taken place, which have been focusing on Jakarlung and Pasamlung areas in north Bhutan, and the Doklam area in west Bhutan.India and China were locked in an intense standoff over Doklam in 2017 for about two months after China began laying a road towards the strategically significant Jampheri ridge line. While India considers the Doklam plateau as Bhutanese territory, China’s stated position is that it is an extension of its Chumbi Valley, located between Sikkim and Bhutan.In June 2020, China also claimed the Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary, located in eastern Bhutan, as its own. The region also shares borders with Arunachal Pradesh in India. China also allegedly built several villages in the Bhutanese territory, which Bhutan’s Prime Minister, Lotay Tshering, had dismissed in an interview with the Belgian newspaper La Libre in March.Tshering had said that the demarcation of the Bhutan-China boundary would be settled at an early date, but the tri-junction point with India would be dealt with separately with the inclusion of India. “Doklam is a junction point between India, China and Bhutan. It is not up to Bhutan alone to fix the problem. There are three of us. There is no big or small country; all are three equal countries, each counting for one-third,” Tshering had said.The Bhutanese prime minister had also said discussions on the tri-junction can only start once India and China have resolved their differences along their borders. “We are ready. We can discuss this as soon as the other two parties are ready. India and China have problems all along their border. We are waiting to see how they will settle their differences,” he had added.For India, Doklam holds great significance from a security point of view. China’s control over the region would pose a threat to India’s Siliguri Corridor, a 22-km stretch which connects the Indian mainland to the Northeast. The stretch, commonly known as the Chicken’s Neck, links India with Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh.