Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade RGOB
To mark the 114th National Day of Bhutan and the opening of the Royal Bhutanese Embassy in Canberra, the Embassy organized a Flag Hoisting ceremony and a Reception on Friday, 17 December 2021.
The Flag Hoisting ceremony in the morning was graced by Mr. Ian McConville, the Chief of Protocol of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Staff of the Embassy and Executive members of the Australia-Bhutan Association of Canberra also attended the program. The hoisting of the flag of Bhutan at the Chancery of the new Embassy marks a historic occasion for Bhutan as it becomes one of the newest members of the diplomatic community in Canberra.
The Reception was held in the evening at Hyatt Hotel and was graced by Mr. David Smith, Federal Member for Bean in the House of Representative as the Chief Guest. It was attended by members of the diplomatic community, senior Australian Government officials, former Ambassadors of Australia to Bhutan, friends of Bhutan in Australia and members of the Bhutanese community.
In this address to the gathering, Ambassador Sonam Tobgay highlighted the close and old friendship between Australia and Bhutan which began in 1962, and expressed gratitude to the important personalities who have sustained and built on this strong foundation over the past six decades. He also highlighted the important role played by the Bhutanese in Australia who are the living embodiment of Australia-Bhutan friendship and the crucial link for people-to-people relations between our two countries.