Dhaka-Delhi talks Thursday
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj arrived here on Wednesday night on her first bilateral visit to demonstrate the importance her government gives to Bangladesh.
She reached Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 10:50pm by a special flight. Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque and Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Pankaj Saran received the Indian Foreign Minister at the airport.
Hours before her departure from New Delhi, Sushma has reportedly spoken to Paschimbanga Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee about her visit.
Though both the countries termed it as a ‘goodwill’ visit, Sushma will have talks with top leadership here during which key bilateral issues, including Land Boundary Agreement (LBA), proposed Teesta water sharing pact, ‘illegal immigration’ and market access to India will prominently come up on the discussion table.
The bilateral talks between Bangladesh and India will be held at the Foreign Ministry between from 9:30am-10:45am on Thursday, said a Foreign Ministry official on Wednesday.
Sushma, according to Indian media reports, made a call to Banerjee to tell her about the visit during which she will hold talks with top Bangladeshi leaders on key bilateral issues.
The then Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh could not sign the Teesta agreement during his visit to Bangladesh in 2011 as Mamata Benarjee declined to accept the draft that was agreed on by the two countries.
Since present Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi enjoys complete majority, Dhaka now expects the pending issues will get resolved at the earliest.
Though there are no pacts to be signed and no big expectations during the visit of the Indian External Affairs Minister, both the countries want to take forward the bilateral ties.
She, according to a diplomatic source, will carry a letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi inviting Sheikh Hasina to visit India in the coming months.
Indian Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh, Spokesperson of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs Syed Akbaruddin and senior officials are scheduled to accompany Sushma.
She will meet President Abdul Hamid at Bangabahban at 6pm and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office at 11.30am on Thursday after holding bilateral talks with her Bangladesh counterpart AH Mahmood Ali earlier in the day.
The media will be briefed at the Foreign Ministry at 2:30pm, he said.
The Indian side will hold another media briefing at the Surma Hall of Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hote at 3:45pm on Thursday.
The Indian Minister is expected to meet Leader of the Opposition Raushon Ershad prior to departure on Friday morning.
BNP sources said there would be a meeting between BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and the Indian External Affairs Minister on Friday morning.
The visit takes place at the invitation of Sushma’s Bangladesh counterpart AH Mahmood Ali who thinks a new horizon in Bangladesh-India relations would usher in with her visit.
The Indian side hopes that the visit will provide further momentum to the close and friendly relations between India and Bangladesh.
This is going to be Sushma’s first stand-alone visit abroad as the External Affairs Minister, and it reflects the importance that India attaches to its bilateral relationship with Bangladesh, a close friend and neighbour.
The Indian External Affairs Minister will also have engagement with think tanks, chambers of commerce and industry and cultural organisations.
She would also deliver a lecture on Bangladesh-India relations at an event to be organised by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) on Thursday evening.
Source: UNB Connect
