Foreign relations of Bhutan

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Foreign Relations of
Bhutan

Independence	August 8, 1949
Joined UN	September 21, 1971

Bhutan
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Bhutan

King Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck Council of Ministers Prime Minister Khandu Wangchuk Je Khenpo Tshogdu (National Assembly) Political parties Elections Royal High Court Districts Foreign relations
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1 Indian suzerainty
2 Foreign embassies and consulates in Bhutan
3 Bhutan has diplomatic relations with the following countries
4 Relationship with the People's Republic of China

[edit] Indian suzerainty

Main article: Suzerainty#Bhutan

[edit] Foreign embassies and consulates in Bhutan

People's Republic of Bangladesh; in Thimphu, Bhutan
Canada through the Canadian Cooperation Office [1] as a conduit; in Thimphu, Bhutan
Republic of India; in Thimphu, Bhutan
- Republic of India; in Puntsholing, Bhutan
United Nations; in Thimphu, Bhutan

[edit] Bhutan has diplomatic relations with the following countries

Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Canada, Denmark, Finland, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Maldives, Nepal, The Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland and Thailand.

The United States of America maintains informal relations with Bhutan via the embassies of the two countries in New Delhi.

[edit] Relationship with the People's Republic of China

Bhutan has no diplomatic relations with its northern neighbour, the People's Republic of China. The border between Bhutan and China is undelineated; in 1961 China published a map that altered the traditional border. Tensions have since lessened, especially after the signing of a 1998 agreement on border peace and tranquility, the first bilateral agreement between China and Bhutan. Despite the lack of formal diplomatic relations, Bhutan has also maintained a consulate in Macau since 2000 and Hong Kong since 2004.

In late 2005, Bhutan claimed that Chinese soldiers were building roads and bridges within Bhutanese territory. Bhutanese Foreign Minister Khandu Wangchuk took up the matter with Chinese authorities after the issue was raised in Bhutanese parliament. In response, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang of the People's Republic of China has said that the border remains in dispute and that the two sides continue to work for a peaceful and cordial resolution of the dispute [2]; an Indian intelligence officer has also said that a Chinese delegation in Bhutan told the Bhutanese that they were overreacting. The Bhutanese newspaper Kuensel has said that China might use the roads to further Chinese claims along the border. [3]

	International ties of Bhutan
Geographical and geopolitical: Asia \| South Asia
International organisations: United Nations \| SAARC \| Non-Aligned Movement \| Group of 77