Sir: To stave off US pressure in South China and also as a matter of long-term policy, China wants to ease tensions with India over their border issue concerning the Doklam-plateau (adjacent to Bhutan). However, India seems hell bent on scuttling any Chinese efforts to appease either themselves, or Bhutan. China even went as far as to offer a land-swap deal to Bhutan in exchange for the Doklam tract. But, India stopped Bhutan from accepting this deal. Bhutan even rejected China’s One-Belt One Road initiative, and Narendra Modi has recently planned a hasty visit to Bhutan lest they should change their mind and strike any deal with China. India wants to use Bhutan as a pawn in Sino-Indian negotiations so as to eke out maximum concessions from China. Already, Modi has visited Rwanda and extended a line of credit to them. In this situation Pakistan might have an important role to play in the near future. The success or failure of CPEC might convince Bhutan to rethink their answer to China, and might force them to alienate India for their own personal gain. KHALID MASOOD Rawalpindi Published in Daily Times, July 27th 2018.