Germany and the Kingdom of Bhutan established diplomatic relations on 25 November 2020, a move which further deepened the friendly ties between the two countries. Consular relations have been in place since July 2000. In March 2023, the Prime Minister of Bhutan, Lotay Tshering, visited Berlin, meeting among others the Federal President and the Federal Chancellor. This was the first time a Bhutanese Prime Minister paid an official visit to Germany.

The German Embassy in New Delhi is responsible for maintaining official bilateral contacts with the Kingdom of Bhutan. In June 2022, the first German Honorary Consul in Bhutan took office. Bhutan’s diplomatic interests are pursued primarily through its mission to the EU. Furthermore, the Honorary Consul for Bhutan based in Berlin and the Honorary Consul based in Essen work to promote Bhutan’s interests.

Germany and Bhutan’s main spheres of cooperation are climate, the environment, healthcare and cultural preservation.

Through its contributions to international organisations, Germany supports multilateral programmes in and for Bhutan run by, for example, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the EU. Individual projects by private initiatives are supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

On the cultural front, Germany has been supporting cultural preservation projects in Bhutan since the 1990s. Most recently, the Federal Foreign Office has been providing support for a joint project of the Bhutan-German Himalaya Society and the National Library of Bhutan to preserve traditional Bhutanese manuscripts.