Bangladesh may be keen for a meeting with India's foreign minister !! ::: Dhaka to use the meeting to 'prevent further strains' in bilateral relations

Bangladesh may be keen to use its foreign affairs advisor's meeting with Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar at Oman to convey a message to "prevent further strains" in bilateral relations between Dhaka and New Delhi.

Last month, Dr Jaishankar reportedly extended an invitation to Bangladesh's foreign adviser Md Touhid Hossain to participate in the Indian Ocean Conference in Oman next week. 

The Indian Ocean Conference has emerged as yet another interesting international event every year.  

8th Conference this year Dates: Feb 16 – 17, 2025

Venue: Muscat, Oman

Theme: Voyage to New Horizons of Maritime Partnership

Notably, the Indian Ocean Conference was started by India Foundation in 2016 at Singapore, with participation from 30 countries. 

In the last 8 years, the Conference has emerged as the flagship consultative forum for countries in the region over regional affairs. 

The Conference endeavours to bring critical states and principal maritime partners of the region together on a common platform to deliberate upon the prospects of regional cooperation for Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR).

The 7th edition of the Conference was organised by India Foundation in association with the Foreign Ministries of India and Australia and partner organisation from Singapore on February 9-10, 2024, in Perth, Australia, sources said.  

India-Bangladesh border Tripura 

'Prothom Alo' newspaper in Dhaka reported that the two leaders are scheduled to meet on the sidelines of the conference.  

If the planned meeting between Hossain and Jaishankar takes place, it will mark their second round of talks in five months.

Hossain and Jaishankar first met in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in September last year.

The close ties between India and Bangladesh came under severe strain after the ouster of Hasina, who was forced to leave the country in the face of a massive anti-government protest in August last year.

Meanwhile, New Delhi’s statement on the demolition of Bangabandhu’s house at Dhanmondi, Dhaka is uncalled-for and unexpected, said foreign affairs ministry spokesperson Rafiqul Alam on Saturday.

According to The Daily Star, Rafiqul made this remark when asked about the statement by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) regarding the destruction of the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum on Dhanmondi 32 on February 5.

On February 6, Indian MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that it was regrettable that the historic residence of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman — a symbol of the heroic resistance of the people of Bangladesh against the forces of occupation and oppression — was destroyed.

“All those who value the freedom struggle that nurtured Bangladeshi identity and pride are aware of the importance of this residence for the national consciousness of Bangladesh. This act of vandalism should be strongly condemned,” he said.