Thimphu: Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay has arrived in India to begin his five-day visit to India till March 18. This is his first foreign trip after assuming the charge in January. He is expected to hold wide-ranging talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu, announced the Ministry of External Affairs,
"PM @tsheringtobgay of Bhutan arrives in New Delhi on his first overseas visit after assuming office in Jan 2024. Received by MoS @AshwiniKChoubey at the airport," said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on X.
"The Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Employment, and senior officials from the Royal Government of Bhutan will accompany the Prime Minister of Bhutan," said the MEA in an official statement. Tobgay will also visit Mumbai during his visit.
“India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding at all levels. The visit of the prime minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan,” the MEA added.
In January, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra travelled to Bhutan on a three-day trip, in the first high-level visit from New Delhi after the formation of the new government under Tobgay.
China-Bhutan boundary row
The Bhutan PM's visit to India comes against the backdrop of China and Bhutan looking at an expeditious resolution of their festering boundary row that could have major implications for India’s security interests. India has been keeping a close eye on the negotiations between Bhutan and China as they could have implications for New Delhi's security interests.
Around five months back, Bhutan’s then-Foreign Minister Tandi Dorji held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing. A Chinese readout on the talks said Bhutan firmly abides by the one-China principle and stands ready to work with China for an early settlement of the boundary issue and advance the political process of establishing diplomatic relations.
In August last year, China and Bhutan agreed to expedite and take simultaneous steps to implement a “three-step roadmap to resolve their festering boundary dispute. In October 2021, Bhutan and China signed an agreement on the “three-step roadmap” to expedite negotiations to resolve their boundary dispute.
The signing of the pact came four years after the Indian and Chinese armies were locked in a 73-day stand-off at the Doklam tri-junction after China tried to extend a road in the area that Bhutan claimed belonged to it. The India-China stand-off in the Doklam plateau in 2017 even triggered fears of a larger conflict between the two neighbours.
(with PTI inputs)
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