VZCZCXRO2144
OO RUEHBI RUEHCI
DE RUEHCI #0376/01 3481346
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 141346Z DEC 07
FM AMCONSUL KOLKATA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1792
INFO RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI IMMEDIATE 1689
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 0769
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 0764
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA PRIORITY 0504
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU PRIORITY 0503
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON PRIORITY 0359
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0407
RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEIDN/DNI WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 2193

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KOLKATA 000376 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR CH IN
SUBJECT: CHINA AND INDIA DISPUTE BHUTAN BORDER:  INDIAN SOLDIERS MOVE 
FROM KASHMIR TO WEST BENGAL 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  Against the backdrop of efforts to improve 
bilateral relations, India and China continue to jostle over 
territory along India's northeast border with China.  On 
December 12, India relocated 6,000 soldiers of the 27th Mountain 
Division (units of the 164 Mountain Brigade) from Jammu and 
Kashmir back to the unit's headquarters in Kalimpong, West 
Bengal.  The media reported the deployment was a response to 
China's latest move into the Dolam Plateau in Bhutan.  However, 
some post contacts believed that the move was more related to 
the reduced tensions in Kashmir allowing for troops to be 
shifted back to West Bengal.  ConGen spoke with Kolkata-based 
Chinese Consul General Siwei Mao, who said that he believed that 
the Chinese forces have moved into Bhutan but that the border is 
not well demarcated and from the Chinese perspective it was not 
an intrusion.  Mao also lamented the lack of Chinese diplomatic 
relations with Bhutan.  The deployment of additional troops to 
West Bengal is not an indication of increasing tensions between 
India and China but does highlight the continued dispute over a 
poorly delineated border.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (U) Since late July, Indian Army and Peoples' Liberation 
Army (PLA) of China have been involved in border disputes near 
the Dolam Plateau, the tri-junction of Sikkim (India), Bhutan 
and China.  On July 27, the 17 Mountain Division of Indian Army, 
headquartered in Gangtok, Sikkim, received a letter from the 
Chinese troops asking for the immediate removal of two Indian 
Army bunkers in Batangla, Bhutan.  The letter stated that 
failure to do so would lead to "adverse consequences."  Local 
commanders from both sides met in a series of meetings (August 
6, 15 and September 15) to resolve this issue.  India asked 
China to soften its stance in light of the December 15 joint 
military exercise and argued that the fight over bunkers would 
go against the spirit of the joint exercise. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) In November, the PLA moved into Bhutan's Dolam Plateau 
and demolished a hut close to the bunkers.  The hut was a rest 
house used by the Indian Army.  Indian Army officials have kept 
the matter quiet as the bunkers are located in Bhutan but manned 
by Indian Army personnel.  According to a Consulate source, the 
Indian Army does have a presence in Bhutan. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Regarding the politics of the border dispute, the 
civilian government and the Army clearly have conflicting 
perspectives.  The Communist Party of India- Marxist (CPM) and 
other Left front partners have pressured the United Progressive 
Alliance (UPA), the Congress-led coalition government, to 
develop broader ties with Beijing.  The CPM favors increased 
engagement with China -- military and commercial.  However, the 
Indian Army is not enthusiastic about softening border security 
in order to facilitate trade with China.  If the border trade 
does develop, the paramilitary Indo-Tibetan border police would 
likely replace the Army in Nathu La and surrounding areas.  The 
Army remains opposed to this prospect.  Post contacts point out 
that China has completed work on the 300 mile railway line from 
Lhasa right up to Yatung which is 20 miles from Nathu La.  This 
gives the Chinese greater maneuverability vis-`-vis India in the 
border region.  The Indian Army is highlighting the improved 
Chinese infrastructure to justify its continued presence along 
the border. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Despite the Indian Army's concern over the border with 
China, military sources commented that recent media reports on 
Indian troop movement into the northeast had been hyped.  The 
troop movement is not a sudden new development, they said.  D. 
Mitra, Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) in 
West Bengal returned from the region yesterday and said that 
Thursday's troop movement was part of an ongoing process to 
bring the 27th Mountain Division back to their base in northern 
West Bengal.  The division was moved to Jammu and Kashmir 
following the 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament as 
part of India's largest military mobilization since the 1971 
Indo-Pakistani War. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) ConGen asked Chinese Consul General Mao what he 
thought of the redeployment of the 6,000 Indian soldiers to the 
Bhutan border and he conceded he had been following develops in 
the media but had little additional information.  He confirmed 
that the PLA had moved into the Dolam Plateau but said that the 
border was not well demarcated and that the Chinese considered 
 
KOLKATA 00000376  002 OF 002 
 
 
the area to be part of China.  He said that because his 
consulate only just opened that presently he has no direct 
communication link with Beijing.  Mao also expressed frustration 
that Bhutan did not have full diplomatic relations with China. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Comment:  The India-China border region continues to 
be subject to dispute and the boundaries are not clearly 
delineated.  Chinese presence in the Dolam Plateau is an effort 
to push its claim to the region and may also be an effort to 
pressure the Bhutanese to establish more formal diplomatic 
relations with China.  Bhutan is more closely aligned with India 
and at times allows the Indian military to operate in Bhutan. 
As the Chinese develop their infrastructure and presence in 
Tibet and southwest China, China will likely increase its 
pressure on Bhutan to be more receptive to Chinese regional 
engagement.  The redeployment of 6,000 troops to northern West 
Bengal appears to have been part of a general draw down of 
troops in Jammu and Kashmir but also presents an opportunity for 
India to signal its resolve to maintain its borders.  It is 
unlikely that there will be any escalation of tension along the 
border area as both India and China want to maintain positive 
relations. 
 
¶8.  (U) This message was coordinated with AmEmbassy New Delhi. 
JARDINE