Israel on Saturday established diplomatic relations with the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in the latest series of normalization agreements agreed by the Jewish government.
“The circle for recognizing Israel is expanding,” Israeli Foreign Minister Kofi Ashkenazi said in a statement. “Establishing relations with the Kingdom of Bhutan will be a new step in deepening Israel’s relations in Asia.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the deal, saying in a statement that Israel “has ties with other countries that want to establish relations with the Jewish state.”
The agreement with Bhutan comes just days after Morocco agreed to normalize relations with its fourth Arab nation, Israel, in August.
According to some analysts, other countries, including traditionally anti-Israel Asian countries such as Saudi Arabia, Oman and Indonesia, may follow suit.
Israeli Ambassador to India Ron Malka on Saturday signed an agreement with his Bhutanese envoy, Maj. Gen. Wetsop Namgeel, to establish “formal diplomatic relations”, calling it a “historic day”.
“This agreement will open up many more opportunities for cooperation for the benefit of our two people,” Malka said on Twitter.
Historic day!
Today formal & formal established formal diplomatic relations. I am proud to be a part of this historic moment and to sign the official note. This agreement will open up many more opportunities for cooperation for the benefit of our two peoples pic.twitter.com/OBD8esreZQ– Ron Malka r (rDrRonMalka) December 12, 2020
The photos he posted showed officials of the two countries signing documents and shaking hands with a smile at the Israeli embassy in New Delhi.
The joint report on the agreement includes economic, technological and agricultural development in key areas of cooperation between the two countries. “Relations between people will be further enhanced through cultural exchanges and tourism,” it added.
Bhutan’s Israel has supported human resource development since 1982, particularly in the agricultural development that has benefited hundreds of Bhutanese youth, according to the report, highlighting the “good relations” maintained between countries despite the lack of formal relations.
The remote Buddhist kingdom, with a population of less than a million, lies between its great neighbors China and India. Bhutan has sought to protect itself from the evils of globalization, striving for “gross national happiness” rather than growth in GDP, maintaining a carbon-negative economy, and reducing the number of tourists daily to a high of $ 250 a day.
The capital, Thimphu, has no traffic lights, tobacco sales are banned and television is only allowed in 1999. Archery competitions are a national frenzy with generous amounts of local tea.
But “Land of the Thunder Dragon” also has its problems, including corruption, rural poverty, youth unemployment and criminal gangs.
While Bhutan is proud of its cultural and political independence, it also has diplomatic relations with about 50 countries and knows that it needs to be opened up. The Kingdom became a member of the United Nations in 1971.
In recent months, Israel’s agreements with the four Arab states of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco have been mediated by the administration of outgoing US President Donald Trump in January.
As the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain agreements became known as the “Abraham Accords”, the Gulf states signed agreements with Israel ranging from tourism to aviation and financial services.
The US State Department bilateral relations fact paper states that Bhutan has no diplomatic relations with any of the permanent members of the UN Security Council, which includes the United States.