There is a lot of history there between China and Tibet reaching all the way to the Yuan dynasty. For example, the Mongolian people have deep ties with the Tibe

There is a lot of history there between China and Tibet reaching all the way to the Yuan dynasty. For example, the Mongolian people have deep ties with the Tibetan Buddhists, such that the Mongolian rulers of the Yuan dynasty gave a lot of leeway to the region. The Manchurian rulers of the Qing dynasty were Buddhists themselves and found a way to politically claim the area while letting Tibet run as a vassal state. Lastly, there was this prophecy among the Tibetans about the diaspora. China has historically considered themselves as the axis mundi of the world. The name “中國” when translated to “Middle Kingdom” loses a lot of the flavor. Better translated as “Central Kingdom”, an insular society in which the far-flung frontiers pivot around the Chinese culture. Both the Opium Wars and the Boxer Rebellion were rude awakenings and humiliating. But I think a lot of people in the West underestimate how much China could have been the superpower at the time, and instead chose not to. I think China’s political goals in the modern time make more sense when viewed this way. Consolidate the historical territories it once held. Make its influence known so other polities can’t humiliate and rob China again.