Bangladesh and China will reach an "important consensus" and sign multiple cooperation documents and MoUs in a number of areas during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s official visit to Beijing on July 8-10, officials said.
The areas are infrastructure, free trade agreement, and agricultural product exports to China, Southern Bangladesh’s Development, digital economy, disaster prevention, poverty alleviation, clean energy, healthcare, education and cultural exchanges.
Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud will brief the media in detail about the visit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday afternoon.
Describing China as a big development partner, Hasan recently said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to China is very important to expedite Bangladesh’s development journey.
At the invitation of Premier Li Qiang of the State Council, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will pay the visit which is expected to "outline a new blueprint for practical cooperation" in various fields and provide an opportunity for the two countries to coordinate their positions on regional and international affairs.
During this visit, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will meet with Chinese leaders, sign a number of cooperation documents, and jointly announce major cooperation achievements, Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen said while talking to diplomatic correspondents at DCAB Talk.
Through this visit, the two sides will achieve new breakthroughs in pragmatic cooperation, bringing more benefits to the people of both countries, said the Ambassador who termed the forthcoming visit a milestone in bilateral relations.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning on Thursday said this will be Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's first visit to China since her new term began and five years after her last visit to China.
During the visit, President Xi Jinping will meet with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Premier Li Qiang will hold a welcoming ceremony and have talks with her.
The two prime ministers will attend the signing ceremony of cooperation documents.
"Leaders of the two countries will have an in-depth exchange of views on how to deepen traditional friendship and expand mutually beneficial cooperation and on regional and international issues of mutual interest," said the Spokesperson.
Prime Minister Hasina will also attend the Summit on Trade, Business and Investment Opportunities between China and Bangladesh, she said.
"We have similar visions for development and well-aligned development strategies. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 49 years ago, the two countries have treated each other with respect and equality, engaged in mutually beneficial cooperation, supported each other on issues concerning our respective core interests, and jointly advanced modernization," said the Spokesperson.
She said they have set a good example of friendship and cooperation between developing countries.
In recent years, with the strategic guidance and commitment of leaders of our two countries, the two sides have deepened Bangladesh-China strategic cooperative partnership, and had fruitful and practical cooperation in various fields.
"China stands ready to work with Bangladesh through this visit to carry forward the spirit of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, deepen political mutual trust, further synergize development strategies, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, speed up implementing the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, and elevate our bilateral relations to a new level," said the Spokesperson.
The Chinese side said it stands ready to take this visit as an opportunity to further deepen political mutual trust between the two countries, strengthen the synergy of development strategies, consolidate traditional friendship, and work together to realize the Chinese Dream of National Rejuvenation and Bangladesh’s “Vision 2041”.