United News of Bangladesh

- Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Tuesday said Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus raised the extradition issue of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina but stressed that nothing was finalised. When pressed further, the Adviser refrained from going into additional details on the issue at this moment. Briefing reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Adviser Hossain said further improvement of the relations depends on both sides. "We need to progress the relations together." Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, after the bilateral meeting between Chief Adviser Prof Yunus and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, told reporters in Bangkok that Prime Minister Modi urged that rhetoric that vitiates the environment is best avoided. Responding to a question regarding the matter, Adviser Hossain said they both agreed on this as the same things are happening from the Indian side too. Asked about the Teesta River Comprehensive Management and Restoration Project with China, he said Bangladesh remains open to both India and China, and Bangladesh will look into where Bangladesh’s interest is protected. “The government has taken a liberal stance. We are open to discussing the project with both sides and will evaluate where Bangladesh’s interests are best served,” the Adviser said. As Bangladesh welcomed Chinese companies’ involvement in the Teesta river management project, he further said progress takes time. “We are not expecting an overnight solution that will resolve the Teesta issue immediately,” he said, adding that cooperation is possible with either country (India or China). There are no obstacles.” Indian Prime Minister Modi on Friday reiterated India's support for a "democratic, stable, peaceful, progressive and inclusive" Bangladesh during his first- ever bilateral meeting with Prof Yunus on the sidelines of the 6th Bimstec Summit. Dr Yunus enquires about Hasina’s extradition request status, seeks measures to restrain her Responding to a question, Adviser Hossain said the government is committed to handover the responsibility to an elected political leadership after holding the election in a free and fair manner. “Bangladesh’s friends always raise the issue of elections,” he said, adding that whenever the subject comes up in discussions, they express concern; even countries without democratic traditions often enquire about Bangladesh’s elections. Modi expressed his conviction that all issues of mutual interest between the two countries would continue to be addressed and resolved bilaterally through constructive discussions, in the interest of their longstanding and mutually beneficial bilateral relationship. The Indian Prime Minister underlined that India believes in a people-centric approach in a relationship and highlighted the cooperation between the two countries for a long period of time that delivered tangible benefits to people on both sides. He underlined India’s desire to forge a positive and constructive relationship with Bangladesh based on pragmatism. On the issue of Indian visas, the Adviser said whether India issues visas or not is entirely their sovereign decision. “We have also temporarily suspended visa issuance to India in the past,” he said. He said visa restrictions do not create a vacuum and when any country suspends visas, people tend to explore alternatives elsewhere. Responding to a question on Rohingya repatriation, Hossain said Myanmar agreed that 180,000 are fit to return, but it does not mean that the Rohingya people will return immediately given the situation on the ground in Rakhine state. Asked about the China visit, Adviser Hossain said engagement at the highest level had yielded some progress. “When top-level communication is in place, it facilitates the advancement of relationships at other levels.” Dhaka to remind Delhi about its request for Hasina’s extradition: Ministry He said several documents were signed during the visit and the Chief Adviser and Chinese President discussed mutual interests. “I believe the visit has had a reasonably positive impact,” he added. Commenting on protests by Bangladeshi nationals over delays in obtaining Italian visas, Hossain said Dhaka is in continuous dialogue with Rome. “There are questions concerning the authenticity of the documents submitted with visa applications. A large number of fake documents have been detected,” he said. Italian authorities are currently verifying the genuineness of submitted documents, and as a result, even applicants with legitimate paperwork are experiencing delays and complications, the adviser added.

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri arrived here on Monday morning to hold a several meetings in Dhaka, including Foreign Office Consultations, which is seen as an opportunity to address mutual concerns. Ishrat Jahan, Director General (South Asia wing) received the Indian Foreign Secretary upon his arrival in Dhaka. Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma was also present. Foreign Secretary Misri and his Bangladesh counterpart, Md Jashim Uddin, will lead their respective delegation at the Bangladesh-India Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) today. After the FOC, the Indian foreign secretary is scheduled to meet Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain this afternoon. He is also likely to meet Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus today. Adviser Hossain on Sunday expressed optimism that Bangladesh and India would be able to overcome the kind of stalemate that two neighbouring countries witnessed over the last couple of months. “We expect that we will be able to overcome this impasse. Establishing mutual communication and meeting each other are very important to overcome any such stalemate,” he said. Read: Indian Foreign Secretary arrives Monday for key talks amid strained ties Speaking at a seminar at the Jatiya Press Club, Hossain said, “I hope they (foreign secretaries) will have a fruitful discussion." He said it is also important to note that the relations between Bangladesh and India witnessed changes after August 5 and both sides need to try and take forward the relations accepting this changed reality. The downturn that the two countries witnessed over the last few months in terms of bilateral business activities affected both Bangladesh and India, not just Bangladesh got affected, said the Adviser. This is the first visit made by a senior Indian government official to Bangladesh since the interim government, led by Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, came to power on August 8. The FOC led by the foreign secretaries is a structured engagement between Bangladesh and India. Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Mohammad Rafiqul Alam said there are always efforts to keep all the elements of the bilateral relations on agenda. Read more: Foreign Secretary discusses student visa backlog with German Ambassador He, however, said there are some broad areas - trade, border management, connectivity, and water issues - and these will be discussed.