NEW DELHI: Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will travel to India from April 3 to 5 at the invitation of President Droupadi Murmu, the government announced on Saturday. The king, who will be accompanied by Bhutan’s foreign minister and other senior officials, will hold meetings with Murmu and also PM Narendra Modi.
Official sources said the visit is in keeping with the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and had nothing to do with the recent controversy in the Indian media over the remark attributed to Bhutan PM Lotay Tshering that China has an equal say in resolving the Doklam tri-junction dispute.
Tshering has clarified since then that he didn’t say anything new and that Bhutan’s position on the issue has not changed. Bhutan believes his remarks in an interview to a Belgian paper were either misinterpreted or reported without mentioning the context in which he had spoken about the boundary dispute with China. India and China had reached an agreement in 2012 that tri-junction boundary points will be finalised in consultation with the third country involved.
India believes it has a unique relationship with Bhutan that has been sustained by regular high-level contacts. Bhutan has so far all resisted efforts by China to open a diplomatic mission in Thimphu. “India has been Bhutan’s top trading partner, and remains the leading source of investments in Bhutan. In November 2021, India formalised the opening of seven new trade routes for Bhutan’s bilateral and transit trade with the country,” said an official source.
Official sources said the visit is in keeping with the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and had nothing to do with the recent controversy in the Indian media over the remark attributed to Bhutan PM Lotay Tshering that China has an equal say in resolving the Doklam tri-junction dispute.
Tshering has clarified since then that he didn’t say anything new and that Bhutan’s position on the issue has not changed. Bhutan believes his remarks in an interview to a Belgian paper were either misinterpreted or reported without mentioning the context in which he had spoken about the boundary dispute with China. India and China had reached an agreement in 2012 that tri-junction boundary points will be finalised in consultation with the third country involved.
India believes it has a unique relationship with Bhutan that has been sustained by regular high-level contacts. Bhutan has so far all resisted efforts by China to open a diplomatic mission in Thimphu. “India has been Bhutan’s top trading partner, and remains the leading source of investments in Bhutan. In November 2021, India formalised the opening of seven new trade routes for Bhutan’s bilateral and transit trade with the country,” said an official source.
