DHAKA: Bangladesh seeks to increase trade and economic cooperation with Pakistan, the office of Chief Adviser Prof. Muhammad Yunus said on Saturday as Dhaka began hosting Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in the highest-level trip from Islamabad in years.
Dar’s two-day visit to Bangladesh will include meetings with Yunus and Touhid Hossain, the country’s adviser for foreign affairs, with discussions expected to cover bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues.
“During the visit of the Pakistan deputy prime minister, Bangladesh will focus on increasing bilateral trade and commerce and economic cooperation,” Azad Majumder, Yunus’ deputy press secretary, told Arab News on Saturday.
Dar’s trip follows Yunus’ meetings with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over the past year. The two have met twice since Yunus took office last August, after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted in a student-led uprising.
The leaders met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York in September, and then again during the D-8 Summit in Cairo in December.
Majumder said: “During the meeting at Cairo, both the leaders of Bangladesh and Pakistan identified some areas where bilateral cooperation can be increased between the two countries. Some of these cooperation areas are textile industries, sugar industries, exchange of youth delegation, and so on … Bangladesh will also focus on accelerating bilateral cooperation on (these) areas.”
Dhaka and Islamabad are moving quickly to mend relations after decades of bitterness dating back to Bangladesh’s independence in 1971. The war split East Pakistan — now Bangladesh — from West Pakistan, ending 24 years as one country.
Prior to Dar’s trip, Pakistan’s Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan arrived on Thursday on a visit aimed at expanding trade ties, with official talks touching on agriculture and food security to strengthen crop yields.
Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch held foreign office consultations in Dhaka in April this year, the first such dialogue in 15 years.
Pakistani cargo ships also began to arrive at Bangladesh’s main Chittagong port last November, for the first time since 1971.
Humayun Kabir, former Bangladeshi ambassador to the US, told Arab News: “I think both countries are prepared to make up for lost time over the last 15 years and find ways to make a normal relationship, which will be beneficial for both sides.
“Since Pakistan has a stable government at the moment, they can easily initiate this type of diplomatic advancement.
“Bangladesh can benefit in many ways through the enhancement of bilateral relationships with Pakistan … We have many complementarities, particularly in the areas of trade and commerce. Besides, there is scope for people-to-people contact, academic exchange, etc.”
For many Bangladeshis, memories of the 1971 war of independence remain vivid.
“We have some pending issues with Pakistan. Pakistan is yet to fulfill an outstanding issue related to the genocide that took place in Bangladesh in 1971, committed by its people,” Kabir said.
“I think, in order to move forward with the bilateral relationship, a concrete decision should come from the Pakistan side in this regard. When such an emotional issue remains unresolved, there are fears that other areas of cooperation may get hampered.
“Once these pending issues are resolved, I think it will pave the road for a normal relationship, and it will ultimately be a positive thing for both countries.”
