Philippine Ambassador to India Josel Ignacio and the Bhutanese Ambassador to India Major General Vetsop Namgyel formally established diplomatic relations in New Delhi, India on Monday, October 6.
In his remarks, Ignacio underscored the importance of mutual understanding between the two countries.
“Today, we have given flesh to the mutual aspiration of our governments and peoples to promote mutual understanding and strengthen friendship and cooperation, guided by the principles of the UN Charter and international law,” he said.
Ignacio also emphasized that countries had built ties for years, with the Philippines actively extending training and other technical assistance to the Kingdom.
“We foresee engagements between both our countries gaining new momentum-in economic interaction; people-to-people, tourism and cultural exchanges; and cooperation in multilateral fora to advance shared advocacies,” he added.
For his part, Namgyel also highlighted the two countries’ warm relations and fruitful cooperation even before formal diplomatic ties were established.
“Over the years, Bhutan has benefited from education and training opportunities in the Philippines for our students and officials-through the Colombo Plan, the Asian Development Bank, and the JICA Third Country Program. Many Bhutanese students have completed undergraduate and master’s degrees in Philippine universities,” he said.
The ambassador further expressed his government’s commitment to work closely with the Philippine Embassy, noting ‘to take our friendship and cooperation to new heights in the years ahead.’
With the signing of the communiqué, the Philippines became the 58th country to establish diplomatic relations with Bhutan and the 6th among ASEAN states.
