Israel normalizes ties with Bhutan

Israel has established diplomatic relations with Bhutan for the first time in its history.

Ron Malka, the Israeli Ambassador to India and his counterpart from Bhutan signed the final agreement normalising ties on Saturday night, having held secret talks over the past year towards the goal of forging official ties.

Bhutan is a Buddhist kingdom in the Himalayas, bordering India and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China, which has historically remained diplomatically isolated from the international community, in an effort to avoid foreign influence.

Bhutan has formal diplomatic relations with only 53 countries, which does not include the United States, the United Kingdom, France or Russia.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, and the Foreign Minister of Bhutan Tandy Dorji spoke last week on matters pertaining to water management, agriculture, and healthcare.

Ashkenazi stated that "I want to thank the Kingdom of Bhutan and praise the decision to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel, I invite my friend Foreign Minister Dorji to visit Israel to promote cooperation between the countries. I hope that in the next year we will host the King of Bhutan in the next year for his first official visit [to Israel]".