We are pleased you have addressed this fuzzy border, Victor.
Like Lebanon and Syria, there is no known written boundary agreement
delimiting or describing the boundary. Nineteenth and early Twentieth
Century British Survey of India maps show the line following largely the
watershed based on the topography as interpreted by the colonial
cartographers, whose understanding of the hypsography on the Chinese
side was, shall we say, quite sketchy. Before then, local peoples
apparently recognized the traditional separation along certain high
elevation peaks in this remote, sparsely inhabited region. The
configuration of the boundary as drawn by the British, however, has
remained fixed on current Bhutanese maps, even though the true watershed
lies somewhat further south -- which is where the Chinese presently show
the boundary on their maps. This discrepancy amounts to some 1400
square kilometers.
Several mapping entities show two lines as the boundary. Some simply
label one line or the other as indefinite.
China and Bhutan have been in boundary discussions but to our knowledge
no resolution has materialized. One might say this boundary constitutes
an uncontested dispute, as neither side asserts more than cartographic
claims. However, the true alignment remains clearly in question.
Kindest regards,
Ray
Ray Milefsky, Specialist
International Boundaries and Sovereignty Issues
Office of the Geographer and Global Issues
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC 20520-6510
Phone: 202 647 1205
Fax: 202 647 0504
-----Original Message-----
From: International boundaries discussion list
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Professor Victor
Prescott
Sent: Saturday, January 20, 2007 10:54 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [INT-BOUNDARIES] Bhutan-China
Dear Colleagues,
I notice the latest Times Atlas shows a definite international
boundary between Bhutan and China. I must have been asleep!
Could anyone tell me the date the boundary was agreed?
Sincerely, Victor
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