BRICS invite row angers Bangladesh? Dhaka reviews 101 deals with India | Today’s news
Bangladesh is reviewing 101 agreements signed with India, ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) parliamentary chief Nurul Islam Moni said on Friday, amid a diplomatic row over Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s invitation to the BRICS summit in Delhi.
Moni made the remarks at the parliamentary media center after the conclusion of the 13th parliamentary third session, Prothom Alo reported.
When asked if the agreements allowing friendly countries’ ships to use Chattogram and Mongla ports would be cancelled, Moni said Bangladesh was reviewing all 101 memorandums of understanding (MoUs).
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Bangladesh is reviewing 101 agreements with India over a diplomatic dispute over Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s invitation to the BRICS summit not being extended from his tenure as Bangladesh prime minister.
Bangladesh is considering scrapping various “unethical agreements” that allegedly favored foreign vessels over domestic ones, especially in terms of port policy at Chattogram port.
The Bangladeshi government seeks to prioritize its sovereignty and domestic interests and withdraw from agreements deemed harmful to its national welfare.
Bangladesh has ruled out Tarique Rahman’s participation in the BRICS summit, saying he was not invited as prime minister but rather as BIMSTEC chairman.
Bangladesh is focused on strengthening bilateral relations with India, while expressing disappointment at the way its national interests are represented in multilateral forums such as BRICS.
“We are reviewing the agreements, all 101 memoranda of understanding. You will receive the result very soon, very soon,” he said.
Read also | Bangladesh rules out Tarique Rahman’s visit to India for BRICS summit
Dhaka cites ‘unethical deals’
Moni did not specify which agreements could remain in place or which could be canceled or changed.
He said the government was walking away from various “unethical deals” to favor Bangladesh’s national interests. He cited what he described as unfair agreements under previous governments, including port policies that favored foreign vessels over Bangladeshi ships at Chattogram port.
The BNP chief said Bangladesh’s future diplomatic relations would be guided by the need to protect its sovereignty and domestic interests.
His comments came as Dhaka expressed disappointment over India’s decision to invite Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to the BRICS summit as chairman of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), rather than as Bangladesh’s prime minister.
Read also | Why Bangladesh is bullish on China’s J-10 fighter jets, not the Dassault Rafale
“He is not invited as Prime Minister”
Bangladesh has ruled out Rahman visiting India for the BRICS summit this weekend, saying he was not invited as prime minister and that the invitation was extended to the BIMSTEC chairman.
India, which is hosting the 18th BRICS summit as the current chair of the grouping, invited Rahman to attend as BIMSTEC chair. A separate bilateral invitation for Rahman was in effect from February, PTI reported.
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir said that Rahman’s first visit to India should not be multilateral and that Dhaka was placing more emphasis on bilateral visits and discussions.
“When the environment is conducive and mutual respect is maintained, bilateral visits will take place. There is no need to rush,” Kobir said, adding that Bangladesh was working to arrange a bilateral visit to India when the timing was favourable.
BRICS Summit in Delhi
On India-Bangladesh trade, Kobir said bilateral talks were continuing positively, but did not announce any new developments.
He also said that Dhaka will seriously address issues that concern its national interests, including the impending expiry of the 30-year-old Ganga water-sharing agreement. The contract, signed in 1996, expires in December.
Meanwhile, the BRICS summit kicked off in New Delhi on Saturday, attended by leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
