NSA Ajit Doval calls on Bhutan King Jigme Wangchuck

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met with Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, who arrived in India on April 3 for a three-day visit.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar welcomed Bhutan’s King Jigme Singye Wangchuck upon his arrival in the country on Monday and later met with him in the evening. Bhutan King’s vision for strengthening the country’s unique partnership with India is “deeply appreciated,” according to Jaishankar. Bhutan’s King is in India at President Droupadi Murmu’s invitation. He will meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Murmu later today.

Bhutan’s Foreign Minister, Dr Tandi Dorji, and other senior officials accompany the king.

King Wangchuck’s visit is in keeping with the long-standing tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two nations, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

The MEA noted, “India and Bhutan enjoy unique ties of friendship and cooperation, which are characterized by understanding and mutual trust.”

According to the external affairs minister, the Bhutan King’s visit will provide an opportunity for both countries to review bilateral cooperation and to advance the close bilateral partnership, including economic and development cooperation.

The two countries’ unique relationship has been preserved by a practise of frequent high-level exchanges, such as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bhutan in August 2019 and Jaishankar’s visits in 2019 and April 2022.

In addition, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra paid a visit to Bhutan in January of this year. Earlier in February 2023, a Bhutanese Parliamentary delegation led by Wangchuk Namgyel, Speaker of Bhutan’s National Assembly, paid a visit to President Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

In welcoming the delegation in February, President Murmu stated that India deeply values the two countries’ multifaceted and unique friendship. She stated that Bhutan will graduate from the Least Developed Countries (LDC) group this year and will be on its way to becoming a High Income Economy by 2034.