International organisations and bilateral development partners are ready to support Bhutan ’ s development efforts and political transformation.

TMC is an autonomous ‘ Civic Body ’ under the municipal charter granted in 2003, as per the Bhutan Municipal Act of 1999.

The arts and crafts of Bhutan that represents the exclusive " spirit and identity of the Himalayan kingdom ’ is defined as the art of Zorig Chosum, which means the " thirteen arts and crafts of Bhutan ".

It assumes a desire to ‘ develop ’ along the traditional ' Western ' model of economic development which a few countries, such as Cuba and Bhutan, have chosen not to allow their citizens to follow.

Under the leadership of Shuja Nawaz, the South Asia Center is the Atlantic Council ’ s focal point for work on Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan as well as on relations between these countries and China, Central Asia, Iran, the Arab world, Europe and the U. S. As part of the Council's Asia program, the Center seeks to foster partnerships with key institutions in the region to establish iself as a forum for dialogue between decision makers in South Asia, the U. S. and NATO.

According to Zimmermann ’ s first description of 1780, the rhesus macaque is distributed in eastern Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, as far east as the Brahmaputra Valley in peninsular India, Nepal and northern Pakistan.

During his travels outside Tibet, Chökyi Tragpa built many monasteries, among others there are four monasteries in Bhutan and he was the first of the Shamar reincarnates to visit Nepal where he built a small monastery in Swayambhunath, one of the country ’ s most sacred places.

* Sixth session ( 30 November – 11 December 2009 ): Côte d ' Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Democratic People ’ s Republic of Korea, Costa Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Norway, Portugal, Albania.

The arts and crafts of Bhutan that represents the exclusive “ spirit and identity of the Himalayan kingdom ’ is defined as the art of Zorig Chosum, which means the “ thirteen arts and crafts of Bhutan ”; the thirteen crafts are carpentry, painting, paper making, blacksmithery, weaving, sculpting and many other crafts.

The first Prime Minister of Bhutan and champion of its philosophy of Gross National Happiness, Lyonchen Jigme Yoser Thinley, regularly attends Rinpoche ’ s teachings.

He also said that “ today ’ s younger generation in the Himalayan region needed to understand the Dharma in a practical way ” and that “ understanding the Dharma in a real way is an important and integral part of the development of Bhutan .”

In 1910, the government of Bhutan signed a treaty with the British in India, granting them control over Bhutan's foreign relations.

In 1910, King Ugyen and the British signed the Treaty of Punakha which provided that British India would not interfere in the internal affairs of Bhutan if the country accepted external advice in its external relations.

During the 17th century Bhutan maintained close relations with Ladakh, and assisted Ladakh in its 1684 war with Tibet.

Although major trade and political relations failed to develop between Bhutan and Britain, the British had replaced the Tibetans as the major external threat.

" In turn, Bhutan agreed " to be guided by the advice of the British Government in regard to its external relations.

Although always seeking to be formally neutral and nonaligned in relations with China and India, Bhutan also sought more direct links internationally than had occurred previously under the foreign-policy guidance of India.

When civil war broke out in Pakistan in 1971, Bhutan was the first nation to recognize the new government of Bangladesh, and formal diplomatic relations were established in 1973.

To further ensure its independence and international position, Bhutan gradually established diplomatic relations with other nations and joined greater numbers of regional and international organizations.

Many of the countries with which Bhutan established relations provided development aid.

Bangladesh maintains friendly relations with Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka and strongly opposed the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

That is, India agreed not to interfere in Bhutan's internal relations, while Bhutan agreed " to be guided by the advice of the Government of India in regard to its external relations " ( Article 2 ).

While Bhutan sees its destiny as being closely linked with that of India, for which reason it strives to promote excellent relations with it, it has also quietly striven to assert its sovereignty at the same time.

Bhutan has diplomatic relations with 42 states, and with the European Union.

In 1971, sponsored by India, Bhutan began to develop its foreign relations by joining the United Nations, though it has no diplomatic relations with any of the permanent members on the UN Security Council.

Under Article 20 of the Constitution of Bhutan enacted in 2008, Bhutan's foreign relations fall under the purview of the Druk Gyalpo on the advice of the Executive, namely the Prime Minister and other Ministers of the Lhengye Zhungtshog including the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Bhutan was the first country to recognize Indian independence and renewed the age old treaty with the new government in 1949, including a clause that India would assist Bhutan in foreign relations.

On its part the Government of Bhutan agrees to be guided by the advice of the Government of India in regard to its external relations.

Bhutan has no diplomatic relations with its northern neighbor, the People's Republic of China.

Despite the lack of formal diplomatic relations, Bhutan has also maintained an Honorary Consul in Macau since 2000 and Hong Kong since 2004.

Nepal and Bhutan established relations in 1983.

However since 1992, relations with Nepal have been tense due to the repatriation of refugees from Bhutan.

Located amidst the Himalayan range, India's border with Bhutan runs 699 km ( 434 mi ).

The Siliguri Corridor, narrowed sharply by the borders of Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh, connects peninsular India with the northeastern states.

Non-members are: Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Bhutan, North Korea, Micronesia, Nauru, Tonga, Cook Islands, Niue, Vatican City and the states with limited recognition.

* 2008 – Bhutan officially becomes a democracy, with its first ever general election.

Relations with Bhutan have been strained since 1992 over the nationality and possible repatriation of refugees from Bhutan.

Bhutan issued one with its national anthem on a playable record.

* The Bengal tiger ( Panthera tigris tigris ), also called the Indian tiger, lives in India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh, and is the most common subspecies with populations estimated at less than 2, 500 adult individuals.

Immigrants from Nepal and India continued to enter Bhutan with a spurt from the 1960s when Bhutan's first modern 5-year plan began, many arriving as construction workers.

However, settlers continued to enter Bhutan with a spurt from the 1960s when Bhutan's first modern 5-year plan began.

The Himalayan range, which consists of three parallel sub-ranges, abuts or crosses five countries: Bhutan, India, Nepal, People's Republic of China, and Pakistan, with the first three countries having sovereignty over most of the range.

Most forms of Chinese are strongly tonal ( an exception being Shanghainese, where the system has collapsed to only a two-way contrast at the word level with some initial consonants, and no contrast at all with others ); while some of the Tibetan languages, including the standard languages of Lhasa and Bhutan and Burmese, are more marginally tonal.

Circa 1627, during the first war with Tibet, Portuguese Jesuits Estêvão Cacella and João Cabral were the first recorded Europeans to visit Bhutan on their way to Tibet.

During Ngawang Namgyal's rule, administration comprised a state monastic body with an elected head, the Je Khenpo ( lord abbot ), and a theocratic civil government headed by the Druk Desi ( regent of Bhutan, also known as Deb Raja in Western sources ).

Under the Cooch Behari agreement with the British, a British expeditionary force drove the Bhutanese garrison out of Cooch Behar and invaded Bhutan in 1772 – 73.

In correspondence with the British governor general of India, however, the Panchen Lama instead punished the Druk Desi and invoked Tibet's claim of suzerainty over Bhutan.

The British mission dealt alternately with the rival ponlop of Paro and the ponlop of Tongsa ( the latter acted on behalf of the Druk Desi ), but Bhutan rejected the peace and friendship treaty it offered.

Bhutan had no regular army, and what forces existed were composed of dzong guards armed with matchlocks, bows and arrows, swords, knives, and catapults.

After 1, 000 years of close ties with Tibet, Bhutan faced the threat of British military power and was forced to make serious geopolitical decisions.

When British rule over India ended in 1947, so too did Britain's association with Bhutan.

When the Chinese communists took over Tibet in 1951, Bhutan closed its frontier with Tibet and sided with its powerful neighbor to the south.