Foreword: Located between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the Strait of Malacca, with a total length of about 1080 kilometers, connects the Andaman Sea in the northwest and the South China Sea in the southeast, is a maritime strategic passage connecting the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, and is also a necessary place for maritime trade between East Asia and South Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe, known as the "sea lifeline". If the Natuna Islands guard the eastern gate of the Strait of Malacca, the key to the west side of the Strait of Malacca is the Andaman-Nicobar Islands.
The Andaman-Nicobar Islands are the key to the west side of the Strait of Malacca, and it is difficult to bypass the western gate
An overseas enclave far from mainland India
The Andaman-Nicobar Islands are located in the southeastern corner of the South Asian subcontinent, at the junction of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, and are closer to Myanmar and Indonesia than to the Indian mainland (about 800 km at the nearest point and 1,000 km in a straight line from Beijing to Shanghai), only 197 km from Myanmar and only about 150 km from the Indonesian island of Sumatra. So from a purely geographical point of view, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands should belong to Southeast Asia, but in fact, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands belong to the Federal Territory of the Andaman-Nicobar Islands of India, which is an overseas enclave far from the Indian mainland.
Compared to the distance from mainland India, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands are closer to Myanmar and Indonesia
The Andaman-Nicobar Archipelago covers a total area of 8,249 square kilometres and consists of 572 large and small islands arranged in a north-south longitudinal direction. However, most of the archipelago is uninhabited islands, and there are only 36 inhabited islands, mainly North Andaman Island, Central Andaman Island, South Andaman Island, Little Andaman Island and other islands, the capital is Port Blair (east coast of South Andaman Island), with a population of about 280,000. The Andaman-Nicobar is located in the tropics, the climate is humid and hot all year round, the annual precipitation is more than 2000 mm, and the forest coverage rate is as high as 86%. However, because of its remoteness from mainland India, much of the Andaman-Nicobar Islands is undeveloped and in a pristine state, especially by the island's indigenous peoples.
The Andaman-Nicobar Archipelago covers a total area of 8,249 square kilometres and consists of 572 large and small islands arranged in a north-south longitudinal direction.
Although part of India's overseas enclaves, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands have little to do with the Indian subcontinent in terms of geography, ethnicity, and history, but have a lot to do with the indochina Peninsula, which is close at hand. For example, in terms of race, the indigenous peoples of the northern Andaman Islands have an average height of 1.2-1.5 meters, belonging to the dwarf black race, and the Andaman language spoken belongs to the Mon-Khmer language family of the South Asian language family, with dark skin and white teeth that are very similar to black Africans, but there are many differences.
The indigenous population of the Andaman Islands is between 1.2 and 1.5 meters tall and is a dwarf black race.
The indigenous people of the southern part of the archipelago are of mixed descent from the Malays and the Burmese Deleng people, belonging to the South Asian type of the race. The entire southern and northern Andaman-Nicobar islands is relatively homogeneous and distinct from the Indian subcontinent. And because of its tropical and primitive hunter-gatherer lifestyle, the island's natives basically wear no clothes, so they are also known as the "naked country" in ancient books. The indigenous people living on the northern island of Sentinai, in particular, refused access to outsiders and usually welcomed only bows and arrows and spears to tourists and shipwreck survivors.
Attack the natives of North Sentinai, or the last primitive tribe of the world, in the attack helicopter.
The Empire of the Rising Sun left an unexpected legacy to India
Because the Andaman-Nicobar Islands are located on the Maritime Silk Road linking East and West, ancient Greek, Arabic and Chinese documents have documented it. But after all, it is located in the wilderness, and the Indian subcontinent has been mostly divided in history, there are few unified regimes, and there are few strong regimes in neighboring Southeast Asia, so the Andaman-Nicobar Islands have always been in a primitive social form, and no one cares. It was not until the arrival of the Age of Discovery that it was occupied by Western colonial powers, and it changed hands between Portugal, Denmark and Britain. Since its occupation by the British in 1789, it has long served as a place of exile for political prisoners in British India, but due to the geographical importance of the archipelago, it is placed under the jurisdiction of The Province of Bengal.
During the Empire, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands came under the jurisdiction of Bengal Province, and after the partition of India and Pakistan, they were eventually acquired by India.
However, it was captured by Japan during World War II, and after the end of World War II in 1945, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands were regained by the British. However, the greatly injured Britain has long since lost the glory of the empire and is unable to maintain a huge colonial rule, so two years later, India and Pakistan were divided, and the Andaman-Nicobar Islands belonged to East Pakistan (that is, present-day Bangladesh), but due to the hidden dangers of religion and Kashmir planted by the British in South Asia, the Third Indo-Pakistani War broke out in 1971, ending with Pakistan's loss of East Pakistan (independence as Bangladesh). After independence, the situation in Bangladesh was turbulent and lacked an ocean-going navy, and eventually the Andaman-Nicobar Islands were pocketed by India, becoming an "unexpected legacy" left to India by the Empire of the Rising Sun.
After the Third Indo-Pakistani War in 1971, East Pakistan was forced to become independent as Bangladesh, but due to the chaos, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands were taken over by India.
It is the gateway to the Indian Ocean, where international aviation and shipping are at stake
The Andaman-Nicobar Islands, as an intractable gateway from the Pacific Ocean to the Indian Ocean, is a strategic gateway to international air and shipping between Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe and the Atlantic. Both the Strait of Malacca and the Kra Isthmus (Thailand), where canals may be dug in the future, are effectively held by the Andaman-Nicobar Islands. It is also because of its important military strategic location and the protection of indigenous peoples who are still in primitive societies that the Andaman-Nicobar Islands have been closed to the outside world for nearly 50 years, becoming a realistic version of the "lost world".
Both the Strait of Malacca and the Kra Isthmus (Thailand), where canals may be dug in the future, are effectively held by the Andaman-Nicobar Islands.
With the acquisition of Indian aircraft carriers and the need to strengthen the military presence in the Strait of Malacca, the Andaman-Nicobar Islands have received increasing attention. So in 1992, part of the island was opened to foreign tourists; in 1999, the Indian Navy began to form a Far East Naval Fleet here; in the 21st century, after India established the goal of being a world power, it further clarified the strategy of "maritime deterrence" and "annihilation of the enemy in the far sea", and in 2001, the first tri-service joint command in the history of the Indian army was established in the Andaman-Nicobar Islands, which has a tendency to turn the entire eastern Indian Ocean into India's "inland sea".
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