Will India annex Bhutan after the annexation of Sikkim? How does Bhutan protect itself?

1975, India annexed Sikkim. It has greatly shaken neighboring countries, especially the government of Bhutan. Bhutan is very similar to Sikkim. The country is very small and heavily dependent on India. The Bhutanese government is also trying to get rid of its dependence on India.

A brief history of Bhutan

Bhutan, like Sikkim, belongs to the Tibetan cultural circle. At present, Bhutan, the main ethnic group in Bhutan, is a hybrid of Tibetans and local aborigines. Bhutan's Sanskrit means Tibet border.

In 633, * * Gambu established the Tubo Dynasty, and the unified Tubo expanded to present Nepal and Bhutan, and its forces reached the Ganges River basin southward. After the demise of the Tubo dynasty, the local Tibetans split into different tribes.

16 16, Xia Zhong Awang Nanjie, a Tibetan monk, left Tibet to preach in Bhutan. After entering Bhutan, Awang South Street in Xiazhong defeated all forces and unified Bhutan in 1637. After reunification, Bhutan still paid tribute to Tibet.

Bhutanese have the Tibetan spirit of being good at fighting. /kloc-in the 0/8th century, it occupied Kuchi Bihar and Assam of Mughal dynasty successively. The Bhutanese who were in full swing were quickly defeated by the British, and Bhutan was forced to cede Kuchi Bihar and Assam to the British.

From 65438 to 0865, Britain coerced Bhutan into signing a series of unequal treaties, including opening customs and exempting tariffs. And ceded 2,000 square kilometers of Deluce Plain to Britain, which paid 50,000 rupees a year.

Bhutan gradually became a British colony. Bhutan has lost its ability to expand, and a modern territory has basically taken shape.

After Bhutan became a British colony, Britain introduced a large number of Nepalese to Bhutan to farm. At present, Nepalese have become the second largest ethnic group in Bhutan.

From 65438 to 0947, the British Indian colony collapsed, and India inherited the main heritage of British India.

1949, India and Bhutan signed the Treaty of Permanent Peace and Friendship, stipulating that Bhutan's foreign relations shall be guided by India and the treaty shall not be amended without India's consent.

Moreover, weapons can only be purchased from or through India with India's permission. The treaty deprived Bhutan of its autonomy in foreign affairs and national defense, which was equivalent to completely opening the door to India and turning Bhutan into a private garden in India.

It was not until 2007, when Bhutan was completely controlled by India, that India deleted the treaties requiring India's guidance in Bhutan's foreign relations.

Although the treaty has been changed, Bhutan's foreign relations are still influenced by India. Coupled with Bhutan's independent diplomatic thought, Bhutan is the only country among our neighbors that has not established diplomatic relations.

1958, when Indian Prime Minister Nehru visited Bhutan, he announced that any country that attacked Bhutan was attacking India.

India needs Bhutan.

Due to the dangerous terrain and conflict history on the border between China and Bhutan, India wants to rely on Bhutan to grasp the geographical advantage.

Bhutan is located in the northeast of India. India and the northeast are only connected by a narrow Siliguri corridor. Separatist forces have always existed in northeastern India. After the failure, these armed forces fled to Bhutan in large numbers, and India wanted to use Bhutan's superior geographical position to attack them.

India's economy is developing rapidly, and there is a serious shortage of electricity. Bhutan, on the other hand, is suitable for building hydropower stations because of its dense rivers and large drop. India has helped Bhutan build a large number of hydropower stations, and most of the electricity is exported to India. For a long time, Bhutan's most exported product to India is electricity.

Bhutan depends on India.

Bhutan has been relying on financial support from India since the first five-year plan of 196 1. India has participated in almost all large-scale construction activities in Bhutan. Without India, it is difficult for Bhutan to carry out economic construction. Economic backwardness and the closure of landlocked countries make Bhutan heavily dependent on India.

India is Bhutan's largest trading partner. As a landlocked country, Bhutan enjoys a duty-free policy for products exported to third countries through India.

In addition to the economy, India provides a large number of bonuses for Bhutanese students, and India has become the main destination country for Bhutanese students.

Bhutan's resistance

At the beginning of Bhutan's independence, it realized the disadvantages of getting too close to India. 1956, the Prime Minister of Bhutan proposed that Bhutan regards itself as an independent country and hopes to remain independent all the time. Successive governments in Bhutan have tried to get rid of the influence of India.

The biggest difference between Bhutan and India after independence is to allow separatists from northeast India to enter the country, because these Indian separatists are stationed on the border of Bhutan, usually fighting guerrilla warfare in India, and then returning to Bhutan during the encirclement and suppression of India.

It has done great harm to India. Considering its independence, Bhutan has not allowed the Indian army to enter its own encirclement and suppression armed forces. Finally, under the pressure of India, Bhutan drove the militants out of Bhutan.

On the issue of Nepalese, Nepalese are called Luochang people in Bhutan, which means southerners. It is the second largest ethnic group in Bhutan, and Bhutanese are not good at farming. During the colonial period, the British introduced Nepalese into the southern plains of Bhutan.

In the 1960s, due to the lack of labor and loose border management in Bhutan, a large number of Nepalese immigrated to Bhutan, becoming the second largest ethnic group in Bhutan.

1975 After India annexed Sikkim, Bhutan may also be annexed. Sikkim is because there are too many Nepalese people, which leads to the replacement of the main ethnic groups. Most Sikkim people agreed to join India in the referendum.

Bhutan began to decide to expel Nepalese from its territory and those who arrived in Bhutan after 1958. Minimize the influence of Nepalese on Bhutan.

Can India annex Bhutan?

There is great resistance to the annexation of Bhutan, and the situation in Bhutan and Sikkim is completely different. Sikkim 1975 can be annexed because the Sikkim government has been completely controlled by India and there are Indian troops.

1949, the Indian government also installed an Indian as the prime minister in Sikkim, and the Sikkim government was completely controlled by India. Moreover, Nepalese account for 75% of the total population of Sikkim, and Tibetan aborigines are a minority. When the referendum was held, the vast majority of Nepalese agreed to join India.

Bhutan is different. Bhutanese are still the dominant indigenous people, while Nepalese account for only 35%, with less influence.

Due to past experience, the Bhutanese government did not allow Indian troops to enter the country.

International opposition, although India can control Bhutan, Bhutanese have no centripetal force towards India and must rely on force to annex Bhutan, which is bound to be opposed by the international community. Now India has been able to firmly grasp Bhutan's economy and diplomacy, and the annexation by force is not worth the loss.

There are a large number of anti-government armed forces in northeast India. If Bhutan is annexed, Bhutanese are likely to join other separatist forces, causing more divisions in the region. This is a problem that the Indian government has to consider.

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As a small poor landlocked country with only two neighboring countries, it is difficult for Bhutan to decide its own destiny. It is difficult to rely heavily on India, but I hope to remain independent. Every gift from India has a price tag. However, it is also difficult for India to annex Bhutan. Controlling Bhutan may be more profitable than annexing Bhutan, and India is happy to leave a younger brother to stand for him.