New Delhi, April 4 India and Bangladesh are set to lay down a new roadmap in terms of cooperation relating to security, counter-terrorism, and connectivity.
Ties between India and Bangladesh were fully reset following the elections in which the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) Tarique Rahman was elected as Prime Minister.
The back channels had worked overtime to ensure this reset, and now, the visit by Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman to India will be watched with keen interest. The visit is an important one and will further lay down the roadmap for ties between India and Bangladesh.
During his two-day visit, Rahman would have one-on-one meetings with External Affairs Minister, Dr S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval.
The meeting with Dr Jaishankar will set the stage for a visit by PM Tarique Rahman to New Delhi in the coming weeks.
The meeting between Rahman and Doval is important as several critical issues will be discussed. Security cooperation is a key area that would be discussed at length, an official said. India and Bangladesh share a long border, and various issues, such as illegal immigration, would be discussed. The two nations are already cooperating on this front, but the meeting would enhance this aspect even more, the official said.
The visit also comes at a time when the West Asia conflict is causing disruptions in the global energy and supply chain. Another official said that this meeting is also important as it is aimed at enhancing regional stability.
Topping the agenda would be counter-terrorism and border-related issues. India and Bangladesh have already agreed that the border should be a zone where no illegal activity takes place. During the Doval-Rahman meeting, the discussions would be around enhancing border security and effective management.
Dhaka’s access to the Indian market would be discussed during these meetings. Smoother transit of Indian goods through Bangladesh to the Northeast would also be on the discussion table.
India and Bangladesh will also discuss ways of securing the Bay of Bengal as a crucial alternative for trade and energy transit. Officials say that this is an important point to be discussed, given the situation in the Persian Gulf.
Another official said that this visit is not just a courtesy call. It will lay down the groundwork for long-term ties between the two countries. The visit by the Bangladesh Foreign Minister will set the stage for the bilateral between PMs Tarique Rahman and Narendra Modi, the official added.
Bangladesh watchers say that this visit is also aimed at building long-term trust between the two nations. For around 18 months after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, the situation had remained volatile in Bangladesh. India had maintained that it wants to share good ties with its neighbours and also insisted that stability and peace in Bangladesh are of utmost importance.
There are other issues too on the table. They include water sharing and imbalances relating to trade. These would be discussed during Rahman’s visit, and a finality would be arrived at when the Bangladesh Prime Minister visits India.
Intelligence sharing will be another subject that will be discussed. This is important to keep those indulging in counterfeiting, illegal infiltrations, and cattle smuggling at bay. The India-Bangladesh border has been notorious for such activities, and curtailing the same is of utmost importance. Intelligence sharing becomes a key topic of discussion.
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