Dhaka has no priority issue for Indo-Bangla talks

Trackback URL

Download PDF

Dhaka plans to raise every bilateral issue between India and Bangladesh at the upcoming foreign secretary-level meeting that will be held after almost two years on Monday, said officials.
‘We have no priority issues. We want to discuss the whole gamut of bilateral problems,’ Md Touhid Hossain, the acting foreign secretary who will lead the Bangladesh side, told New Age on Friday.
Indian foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon, who will arrive in Dhaka on Sunday, will lead the Indian delegation, said a press release issued by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. India has reportedly prioritised connectivity, cross-border security and ‘illegal migration’.
The foreign secretary-level meeting between the two next-door neighbours takes place at a time when Bangladesh is being run by an interim administration and a week after India offered $10 million worth of assistance for the relief of the survivors of the series of landslides in Chittagong that left at least 125 people dead on June 11.
Foreign ministry officials said that issues including security, peaceful border management, cross-border illegal movement, cooperation in management of water resources, economic and trade cooperation, and consular and cultural exchanges will feature in the meeting.
Bangladesh and India have some other contentious issues that include exchange of enclaves and lands in adverse possession, allegations and counter-allegations of harbouring terrorist elements, demarcation of the maritime boundary, and demarcation of 6.5 kilometres of land boundary.
At the last meeting both the sides had reaffirmed their commitment not to allow their territory to be used for any activities detrimental to the interests of the two countries.
The Bangladeshi side had agreed to consider the Indian proposal for coordinated patrolling of the river boundary, wherever feasible.
A high-level meeting was sought by the Indian side to resolve the matters related to illegal cross-border movement. India also reiterated its plan to construct a fence on the international border.
The work on border fencing was nearly completed. Bangladesh stressed the need for conforming to the 1975 border guidelines.
The meeting will also review the progress of the decisions taken at the previous meeting held in New Delhi on June 21-22, 2005.
Touhid Hossain said the meeting would also follow up the discussion between the two top leaders, Manmohan Singh of India and Fakhruddin Ahmed of Bangladesh.
India and Bangladesh are expecting resumption of a direct rail link between the two countries sometime next month.

Leave a Reply