Today, February 16, Bangladesh and India acknowledged the difficulties their bilateral relations are facing and talked about the need to cooperate in order to overcome them. According to a news release from Bangladesh’s foreign ministry, the conversation happened during a meeting between India External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Advisor Md Touhid Hossain on the fringes of the 8th Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) in Muscat, Oman. Touhid emphasized the significance of starting talks for the Ganges Water Treaty renewal during the meeting. He also urged India’s assistance in the problem and emphasized the necessity of calling a meeting of the SAARC Standing Committee. The foreign ministry release stated that both parties were hopeful that the forthcoming conference between the directors general of Bangladesh’s and India’s border guarding forces, which is set to take place in New Delhi from February 18 to 20, would resolve a number of border-related concerns.
According to the foreign ministry, the two leaders also discussed other bilateral topics of interest and concern. The two countries have held several bilateral discussions since their last meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September 2024, including the Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) in Dhaka on December 9 at the level of the Foreign Secretary. Additionally, they recalled the Bangladeshi energy adviser’s involvement in the India Energy Week events held in New Delhi from February 10–11. On the fringes of the IOC, adviser Touhid also met with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Tanzania, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, and the Second Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brunei. Tomorrow, he is expected to meet with Oman’s Foreign Affairs Minister.
Source: The Business Standard
