3 yıl önce

Israel establishes diplomatic ties with Bhutan

The agreement follows several years of secret contacts between Israel and Bhutan with the aim of establishing relations, Israel's foreign ministry said.

Reuters

A statue of Lord Buddha is pictured at Kuensel Phodrang in Thimphu May 20, 2012.

Israel has established diplomatic relations with Bhutan, a majority-Buddhist nation neighbouring India, the Israeli foreign ministry said.

Israel's new relations with the relatively-isolated Himalayan nation did not appear to be related to its budding ties under US-sponsored accords with Arab and Muslim countries in the Middle East and Africa.

The agreement follows several years of secret contacts between Israel and Bhutan with the aim of establishing relations, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Israel's circle of recognition is growing and expanding. The establishment of relations between us and the Kingdom of Bhutan will serve as another milestone in deepening Israel's ties in Asia," Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi said.

A signing ceremony was held between the Israeli and Bhutanese ambassadors to India on Saturday, the foreign ministry said. The countries agreed to formulate a joint work plan in the areas of water management, agriculture, healthcare and other areas, it added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the agreement, adding: "We are in contact with other countries that want to join and establish relations with us."

The move comes two days after Israel and Morocco agreed to normalise ties in a deal brokered with US help, making it the fourth Arab country - after the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan - to set aside hostilities with Israel in the past four months.

Last weekend, I spoke with my colleague, the @FMBhutan, Tandi Dorji. We agreed to establish full diplomatic relations between us beginning this evening 12/12/20. We also spoke about formulating a joint work plan in the areas of water management, agriculture, health and more. pic.twitter.com/YSbZLdbmRM
— גבי אשכנזי - Gabi Ashkenazi (@Gabi_Ashkenazi) December 12, 2020

A rare occurence

The remote Kingdom of Bhutan, a country of less than a million people, is wedged between giant neighbours China and India.

It is famous for its Gross National Happiness index, benchmarking itself on happiness instead of economic growth.

Bhutan has full diplomatic ties with only 53 countries, Israel's foreign ministry said. In fact, the kingdom does not have official diplomatic relations with the US, UK, France or Russia, and has embassies only in seven countries.

Bhutan has tried to shield itself from the downsides of globalisation, striving for "Gross National Happiness" over GDP growth, maintaining a carbon-negative economy and keeping tourist numbers down with a daily fee of $250 per visitor in high season.

While Bhutan is proud of its cultural and political independence, it also has diplomatic relations with some 50 countries, and knows it will have to open up.