On August 9, 2012, Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley met with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying in Thimphu, capital of Bhutan. Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying came to Bhutan to attend the bilateral border talks.

Fu Ying conveyed the cordial greetings and good wishes of Premier Wen Jiabao to Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley. She said that the two countries had the first meeting between heads of government in history at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in June this year and reached important consensus on developing bilateral relations. China cherishes the traditional friendship with Bhutan, respects the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bhutan and respects the development path chosen by Bhutan based on its own national conditions. China appreciates Bhutan for advocating the "Gross National Happiness Index" and striving to achieve balanced and sustainable development. China is looking forward to working with Bhutan to strengthen friendly exchanges and cooperation on the basis of the five principles of peaceful coexistence, speed up the process of border talks, and push for progress in bilateral relations.

Prime Minister Thinley asked Fu to convey his cordial greetings and good wishes to Premier Wen. He happily recalled the first meeting with Premier Wen recently held in Rio de Janeiro. Thinley said that despite of the fact that China and Bhutan haven't established formal diplomatic relations, the two countries have enjoyed increased cooperation and exchanges in every area in recent years and the bilateral trade is also gaining strong momentum. The development concepts of the two countries are similar. Being a neighbor of China in Asia, the Bhutanese government and people highly admire China's development achievements and highly appreciate China's pursuits of a foreign policy of treating all countries, big or small, as equals. Bhutan is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with China on major international issues. He also expressed the belief that the two countries could find a mutually satisfactory solution through bilateral talks on border issues.

On the same day, a signed article titled Building a Bridge of Friendly Cooperation was published on Kuensel, an English newspaper with the longest history and the largest circulation in Bhutan. The article says that Bhutan, as a member of the Asian family, has beautiful sceneries, unique cultures, and hardworking and friendly people. In recent years, Bhutan has enjoyed political stability, social harmony and rapid economic growth. The people are living and working in peace and contentment. The international status of Bhutan is rising. The wedding ceremony of the Fifth King was widely reported in China. People have seen a vibrant, energetic, happy image of new Bhutan. China is the largest neighbor of Bhutan. The two countries have a long history of exchanges and similar cultures and thinking. The Chinese people are friendly to the Bhutanese people and are full of curiosity about and interest in the Land of the Thunder Dragon. In the past 30 years, the two countries held 19 rounds of border talks, during which the two sides had built up many important consensus on resolving the border issues and developing bilateral relations.

It is said in the article that Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Bhutanese Prime Minister Jigmi Y Thinley held the first meeting between heads of government in Rio de Janeiro one month before. At the meeting with important historical significance, the two sides reached new and important consensus on developing bilateral relations. Peace, development and cooperation are the main themes of the world in the 21st century. The time has come for the two countries to build up the bridge of friendly cooperation. China is willing to work with Bhutan and move toward the same direction towards the establishment of diplomatic relations at an early date. The disputed border area is not big. The two sides should uphold the spirit of mutual understanding and accommodation to speed up the negotiation process, find a fair and reasonable solution acceptable to both sides at an early date, and jointly safeguard peace and tranquility of the border area. The friendship between the two countries will not hurt any other country. China is willing to be an amicable and trusted friend of Bhutan, work together with Bhutan to build up a bridge of friendly cooperation, and make joint efforts to benefit the two peoples.