Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud has requested Kyrgyzstan to support Bangladesh for signing the free trade agreement (FTA) with Eurasian Economic Commission and also to support Bangladesh’s candidatures in different international fora.
He made the request when Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic Avazbek Atakhanov paid a courtesy call on him at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday.
Minister Hasan mentioned that there are a lot of scopes for increasing the volume of bilateral trade between the two countries and requested Kyrgyzstan to import garments, pharmaceuticals, jute products, tropical fruits, ceramics, IT products, etc. from Bangladesh.
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The Foreign Minister sought Kyrgyzstan’s assistance for repatriation of the Rohingyas to their homeland. He reaffirmed Bangladesh’s support to the legitimate aspiration of the Palestinian people for independent statehood, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Foreign Minister expressed happiness at the successful completion of the first Foreign Office Consultations between the two countries.
He thanked the President of Kyrgyz Republic for his congratulatory message to the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for her re-election on 7th January 2024.
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The Foreign Minister recalled the valuable support of Kyrgyz people as part of the former USSR extended to our Liberation war in 1971.
Meanwhile, the First Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) between Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan was held at State guesthouse Padma on Monday.
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic Avazbek Atakhanov led their respective sides in the FOC.
All possible areas of bilateral engagements were discussed in the meeting including political cooperation, candidatures in different multilateral fora, increasing the volume of bilateral trade, educational cooperation, agricultural cooperation etc.
Both Foreign Secretary and the Kyrgyz Deputy Foreign Minister agreed that trade between Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan is still very negligible and there are ample scopes to further enhance bilateral trade.
Both sides expressed hope that the pending MoUs between the two countries would be signed soon.
The Foreign Secretary mentioned that Bangladesh’s tourist spots like Cox’s Bazar and Sundarban can be attractive destinations for Kyrgyz tourists.
Both sides also exchanged their views on issues of regional and global security including the situation in Myanmar, Russia-Ukraine war and the ongoing crisis in Gaza.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Foreign Office Consultation between the two Foreign Ministries was also signed during the FOC.