PM Modi meets Bhutanese PM Tobgay, calls Bhutan India’s “special friend”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with his Bhutanese counterpart Tshering Tobgay on Monday and called Bhutan India’s “special friend.” He emphasized that the cooperation between the two nations will continue to get better in the times to come.

In a post on X, PM Modi stated, “Glad to have met you in Delhi this morning, PM Tshering Tobgay. Bhutan is a very special friend of India’s and our cooperation will continue to get even better in the times to come.”

He made the statement in response to a post shared by Bhutanese PM Tshering Tobgay, where he referred to PM Modi as his “friend.”

Tobgay expressed gratitude to the Indian government and people for their steadfast goodwill and cooperation. He expressed commitment to advancing special bond of friendship between two nations.

“Always happy to meet my friend, H.E. Prime Minister @narendramodi ji ; Expressed my gratitude to the Government & people of India for their steadfast goodwill & cooperation. We reaffirmed our commitment to advancing our special bond of friendship from strength to strength,” Bhutanese PM posted on X.

On Monday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Bhutan’s PM Tshering Tobgay in Delhi and discussed deepening bilateral ties.

“I also interacted with H.E. @DrSJaishankar, the External Affairs Minister of India. We talked about deepening our bilateral relations and explored new avenues for regional cooperation aligned with our shared goals,” Tshering Tobgay wrote in a post on X.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri along with Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay took a ride on a green hydrogen-run bus here in the national capital, in a message to sustainable mobility and a green future.

Bhutan’s PM told reporters that he enjoyed the ride. The event was attended by V Satish Kumar, Chairman & Director (Marketing), along with other senior dignitaries from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

“I enjoyed my journey on the bus. I was honoured to be introduced to this wonderful vehicle by the minister of energy transition and the fact that the bus can carry so many people. Knowing that it is generating nothing but water as a waste product and you can’t call it a waste product…,” the Bhutan PM said.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said from 15 such buses, India intends to expand from here.

“…It is our expectation and I am happy that the (Bhutan) PM is gracing this. His presence here will help spread the green hydrogen story,” said Puri.

“With projects pertaining to hydrogen blending in natural gas pipelines, localization of electrolyzer-based technologies, promotion of bio-pathways for green hydrogen production being pursued aggressively, India will be a global champion in production & exports of H2 and is set to emerge as the Hub for green hydrogen which is deemed as the fuel for future with immense potential in helping India meet it’s decarbonization targets,” Puri later wrote on X.

Bhutan PM and Hardeep Singh Puri also discussed opportunities to enhance collaboration, particularly in the energy sector.

In a post on X, Tobgay stated, “I also met with India’s Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, H.E. @HardeepSPuri. We discussed opportunities to enhance our collaboration particularly in the energy sector.”