Proposal of a trilateral bloc of China, Pakistan and Bangladesh creates confusion in Dhaka

Sources say that the discussion at Kunming meeting was preliminary and lacked clarity

- BY ASHIS BISWAS

Despite running the administration for almost eleven months virtually unchallenged, the interim Government in Bangladesh has not been able to achieve functional cohesion or departmental coordination even on major matters of policy. The most recent example is a controversy within the administration over the proposed new trilateral grouping, meant to promote and expand economic co-operation among China, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Only days ago, sections of the Bangladeshi print media prominently displayed the news.., Some reports gleefully claimed that this initiative would cause serious concerns above all in India, as the Delhi-based NDA Government would invariably think that the primary motive behind this was more political than economic -- the real objective was to isolate India.. Such an assessment in Delhi would be natural because since the anti Awami League coup of Aug 5, 2024, India had lost its only trusted ally, Bangladesh, in South Asia.