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Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi on Wednesday said that India is "anxiously waiting" to welcome Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, as New Delhi and Dhaka look to further strengthen bilateral ties.
Trivedi made the remarks after paying courtesy calls to Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam at the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "We are anxiously waiting to welcome the Bangladesh Prime Minister to India, and that is the Prime Minister's prerogative. We are hopeful," Trivedi told reporters after meeting with the Bangladesh Foreign Minister and the State Minister for Foreign Affairs. The meetings marked Trivedi's first courtesy calls after assuming charge as India's High Commissioner to Bangladesh. During the discussions, both sides held general conversations on taking the relationship between the two countries forward. Bangladesh Foreign Ministry officials also confirmed that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has received an invitation from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the outreach session of the 18th BRICS Summit, scheduled to be held in New Delhi on September 12 and 13. "We have received the invitation and forwarded it to the Prime Minister's office for consideration, and the decision will be made by the Prime Minister," a Bangladesh Foreign Ministry official told ANI. "As the current BIMSTEC chair, Bangladesh has received an invitation for Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to take part in the BRICS Summit outreach session. This comes ahead of 2027, when BIMSTEC will mark its 30th anniversary, and Bangladesh is scheduled to host the BIMSTEC Summit in Dhaka," the official added. India, as the host country, has invited Bangladesh's Prime Minister to participate in the outreach segment of the BRICS Summit. The outreach session typically includes selected non-member countries and regional leaders. BRICS brings together 11 major emerging markets and developing countries of the world: Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. It serves as a useful platform for consultation and cooperation on contemporary issues having global as well as regional significance and issues of global political and economic governance. Bangladesh has previously expressed interest in becoming a BRICS member, with China and Russia extending support for its membership bid. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is likely to participate in the BRICS outreach session and may also hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (ANI)
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