Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi have already laid a strong foundation of cooperation between the two countries. To review the growing relations, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj paid an official visit to Bangladesh on October 22-23 that could afford an opportunity for review of the excellent bilateral relations between Bangladesh and India.
This was the second visit of Sushma to Bangladesh and comes soon after the State visit of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh to India in April 2017. During the visit, she and her Bangladesh counterpart AH Mahmood Ali co-chaired the 4th meeting of the India-Bangladesh Joint Consultative Commission.
The External Affairs Minister said Bangladesh gets priority among all India’s neighbours as per its neighbourhood policy.
“Our foreign policy follows neighbourhood first approach. Parsi pehele, lekin Bangladesh sabse pehele (Among all neighbours [of India] Bangladesh comes first),” she said reflecting India’s growing importance to Bangladesh.
Calling her Bangladesh counterpart AH Mahmood Ali as his ‘brother and Dada’, Sushma assured Bangladesh of resolving all the issues transparently and sincerely.
She refereed to the peaceful settlement of disputes over Maritime Boundary and Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh in the past.
Sushma inaugurated the new Chancery Complex of the Indian High Commission and 15 development projects in Bangladesh funded by the government of India at a cost of Tk 71.64 crore.
“I’m confident we would be able to take the relations to greater heights in the times to come,” said the External Affairs Minister.
Sushma said the relationship between Bangladesh and India is moving ahead in a faster pace.
She also laid emphasis on investing in youths who will lead the future of the two countries. “The youth of today is the future of tomorrow.”
Sushma expressed her satisfaction over easing visa process and hoped to issue visas for 14 lakh Bangladesh citizens in one year by the end of 2017.
She also delivered her speech partly in Hindi and concluded her speech saying “Bharat-Bangladesh Moitree Jindabad.”
This story is from the October 27, 2017 edition of Dhaka Courier.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 27, 2017 edition of Dhaka Courier.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Rohingya: Walk A Mile In Their Shoes
My reminiscences of Cox’s Bazar are deeply rooted in my childhood during family vacations taken with my parents and three siblings - horse rides on the beach, sunsets against the widest horizon, charcoal barbecues by nightfall, and copious amounts of seafood throughout our stays. My recent trip to Cox’s Bazar, some 20 odd years later, however, was starkly contrasting in that the circumstance was dire, one which continues to sit steep in my mind.
Suu Kyi Risks Losing Ground To Military Over Rakhine Crisis
YANGON • Locals like to joke that Myanmar has two governments. That’s not very far from the truth.
Satellite Images Show Sprawling Rohingya Refugee Camps
Massive, makeshift refugee camps are sprawling over farms and open land in southern Bangladesh as more than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims flee violent attacks in their predominantly Buddhist homeland of Myanmar.
Akhtarun Nahar Ivy's 9
UNB Cultural DeskArt is a unique, powerful tool of connecting people, culture, says Ahn Seong-Doo
Ganasangeet Festival Still Showing Hope For Music
Ganasangeet Festival Still Showing Hope For Music
Trump Hurtles Toward Three Nuclear Crises
Trump Hurtles Toward Three Nuclear Crises
What Bangladesh Stands To Gain From Bangabandhu-1
What Bangladesh Stands To Gain From Bangabandhu-1
Where Good Voices Must Go Bad
Where Good Voices Must Go Bad
The minister's one hundred taka
The minister’s one hundred taka
Dhaka Wants Delhi Pressure For Rohingya Return
Indian foreign secretary visits Bangladesh, no development on Teesta front
