Suzerainty

"Suzerain" redirects here. For the video game, see Suzerain (video game).
Not to be confused with Sovereigntism or Sovereignty.

Suzerainty (/ˈsuːzərənti, -rɛnti/) includes the rights and obligations of a person, state, or other polity which controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state but allows the tributary state internal autonomy.[1][2] Where the subordinate party is called a vassal, vassal state, or tributary state, the dominant party is called a suzerain. The rights and obligations of a vassal are called vassalage, and the rights and obligations of a suzerain are called suzerainty.

Suzerainty differs from sovereignty in that the dominant power allows tributary states to be technically independent but enjoy only limited self-rule. Although the situation has existed in a number of historical empires, it is considered difficult to reconcile with 20th- or 21st-century concepts of international law, in which sovereignty is a binary concept, which either exists or does not. While a sovereign state can agree by treaty to become a protectorate of a stronger power, modern international law does not recognise any way of making this relationship compulsory on the weaker power. Suzerainty is a practical, de facto situation, rather than a legal, de jure one.

Current examples include Bhutan and India. India is responsible for military training, arms supplies, and the air defense of Bhutan.[3][4][5][6]

  1. ^ "Suzerain". Merriam Webster. Archived from the original on 2009-04-22. Retrieved 2010-04-30.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Warikoo, K (2009). Himalayan Frontiers of India: Historical, Geo-political and Strategic Perspectives. Routledge contemporary South Asia series. Vol. 13. Taylor & Francis US. p. 139. ISBN 978-0-415-46839-8. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  4. ^ "Indo-Bhutan Friendship Treaty" (PDF). Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 1949-08-08. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  5. ^ Dorji, Kinley (2007). "Eastern Air Command Chief Visits Bhutan". Kuensel online. Archived from the original on 2006-11-05. Retrieved 2011-11-01.
  6. ^ "A Nation Pays Tribute". Kuensel online. 2004-08-15. Archived from the original on 2011-06-10. Retrieved 2011-11-01.