The concept of Doklam refers to a disputed area of a high plateau and valley, approximately 89 sq km, located at the tri-junction between China's Yadong County, Bhutan's Haa District, and India's Sikkim state. It is a geographical concept that is a flashpoint in international relations due to its immense strategic significance for all three nations.
The origin of the dispute is primarily between China and Bhutan, dating back to the 1960s, with China claiming the territory based on the 1890 Convention of Calcutta between Britain and China. The issue gained global prominence with the 2017 China-India border standoff. This crisis began on June 16, 2017, when Chinese troops attempted to extend a road southward on the plateau, which India and Bhutan consider Bhutanese territory. India intervened on June 18, 2017, on behalf of Bhutan, to stop the construction.
The mechanism of the dispute centers on the location of the tri-junction point. China asserts the tri-junction is at Mount Gipmochi, while India and Bhutan maintain it is further north at Batang La. India's intervention was driven by the fear that a Chinese presence on the plateau would threaten the Siliguri Corridor, or 'Chicken's Neck,' a narrow strip of land connecting mainland India with its North-Eastern states.
Doklam connects to the broader Sino-Bhutanese border dispute and India's security commitments to Bhutan, which are grounded in the India-Bhutan Friendship Treaty of 2007. The standoff ended on August 28, 2017, with both sides agreeing to a disengagement and withdrawal of troops, returning to the status quo ante bellum. While the military standoff was resolved, the underlying territorial dispute between China and Bhutan remains unsettled. Reports in October 2017 indicated that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) increased its troop deployment in the nearby Chumbi Valley following the disengagement.