Bangladesh, China for regional connectivity in South, South East Asia

Bangladesh and China in a meeting have shown interest in contributing to the regional connectivity in South and South East Asia under the auspices of the Belt and Road Initiative of China.

The two sides expressed the sentiment at the 12th Foreign Office Consultations held at the State Guest House ‘Padma’ in Dhaka on Saturday, reads a foreign ministry press release.

Ambassador Masud Bin Momen, foreign secretary (senior secretary) led the Bangladesh delegation while the Chinese delegation was led by Sun Weidong, vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

Sun Weidong mentioned that he is visiting Bangladesh after ten years and is very impressed to see Bangladesh’s tremendous development achievements carried out by the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Both delegations discussed a wide range of issues of mutual interests and cooperation in multilateral forums.

Bangladesh and China both showed interest in contributing to the regional connectivity in South and South East Asia under the auspices of the Belt and Road Initiative of China.

The two sides also expressed satisfaction with the existing defence cooperation and discussed possibilities of regular staff-level talks and specialised training programs.

Sun Weidong assured of encouraging Chinese farms to invest in the Chinese Special Economic Zone in Chattogram. They also advised timely notification of interest with the Chinese Civil Aviation Authority for resuming the Dhaka-Guanzhu direct flight by Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

The Chinese side reiterated its appreciation to Bangladesh for its continued support of the One China Policy. They recalled the recent high-level political exchanges and meetings that have further deepened the strategic partnership of cooperation.

Both sides agreed to launch regular consular consultations to address visa-related issues, especially for Bangladeshi students. Bangladesh expressed its interest in working together with China on innovation in digital technologies and biotechnologies.

Bangladesh once again thanked China for its support for vaccines to manage the Covid-19 pandemic.

The two sides reviewed the progress of different quality infrastructure projects in Bangladesh and welcomed the upcoming inauguration of mega projects like the Bangabandhu Tunnel under the river Karnaphuli and the Padma Bridge Rail-link.

Both sides agreed to further streamline the outstanding issues concerning a few additional project proposals in the power and communication sectors.

Delegates at the meeting also discussed ways to enhance the exports to China by utilising the Duty and Quota Free (DFQF) access to 98 per cent of the products that has come into effect on September 1, 2022.

The Chinese side expressed particular interest in importing tropical fruits like mango, jackfruit, guava and frozen foods from Bangladesh in compliance with necessary quality specifications.

Bangladesh requested to include other export items like vegetables, pharmaceuticals, raw hides, foot wares, non-knit apparel, etc in the DFQF coverage to minimise the existing trade imbalance with China.

China offered its support to build capacity for addressing emerging challenges like online gambling and drug trafficking. The two sides agreed in principle to have dedicated dialogue on public security issues. Bangladesh thanked China for sharing meteorological satellite information during natural calamities like cyclones and floods.

They also discussed other multilateral and regional issues including the Rohingya crisis. The Chinese side reiterated to facilitate the early, safe, sustainable and voluntary repatriation of the Rohingyas to Rakhine State from Bangladesh.

The vice minister mentioned that early repatriation would be beneficial for Bangladesh, Myanmar and the whole region. The Chinese side appreciated the initiatives of Bangladesh to arrange the ‘Go and See’ visit in Myanmar and the ‘Come and Talk’ visit in Bangladesh by the respective delegations of Bangladesh and Myanmar to facilitate the repatriation of the first batch of the Pilot Project.

The Foreign Secretary thanked China for their cooperation and emphasised Bangladesh’s ongoing efforts to arrange continued voluntary and sustainable repatriation engaging friendly countries, and regional and international organisations.