December 14, 2020: Israel and Kingdom of Bhutan announced formalisation of diplomatic relations on December 12. This comes just days after Morocco established formal relations with Israel. The declaration was signed at the residence of Israel’s Ambassador to India, Dr. Ron Malka where he held an official exchange of notes ceremony with his colleague, the Ambassador of Bhutan to India, Major General Vetsop Namgyel.
“Historic day! Today Israel & Bhutan established formal diplomatic relations. I was honored & excited to be part of this historic moment & to sign the official note. This agreement will open up many more opportunities for cooperation for the benefit of both our peoples,” announced Dr. Ron Malka on Twitter.
“The circle of those who recognize Israel is growing and expanding. The establishment of relations with the Kingdom of Bhutan serves as another milestone in the deepening of Israel’s relations with the Asian region,” said Israeli foreign minister, Gabi Ashkenazi, in a statement.
The statement released by Israel’s foreign ministry confirmed that the two nations had covert contacts over the years and were working to establish official ties with delegation from Israel and Bhutan visiting each other in Thimphu and Israel. As per the information released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israel has supported Bhutan’s human resource development since 1982, especially in the area of agriculture development that has benefitted hundreds of Bhutanese youths.
The joint statement released by Israel and Bhutan said the two countries would work to “deepening cooperation in areas including economic, technological and agriculture development.”
Bhutan is the fifth country to normalise relations with Israel in the past few months. Earlier, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco initiated normalisation of diplomatic relations, with the United States brokering the talks.
