The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday said they have no update to share regarding a likely bilateral meeting between Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the Bimstec Summit in Bangkok, Thailand early next month.
“On the meeting that you asked, a bilateral meeting, I don't have any update to share at this point in time,” said MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
He made the remarks at a weekly briefing in New Delhi when a journalist wanted to know whether there was a likelihood of Prime Minister Modi meeting the Chief Advisor of Bangladesh Prof Yunus on the sidelines of the Bimstec Summit.
Responding to a separate question, the MEA Spokesperson said Bangladesh-India relationship is a wide canvas and they have been engaged with Bangladesh on several issues - development cooperation, economic matters and on issues of connectivity.
Earlier, Bangladesh approached India through the diplomatic channel to arrange a meeting between Dr Yunus and Indian Prime Minister Modi on the sidelines of the upcoming Bimstec Summit in Bangkok.
Dr Yunus is scheduled to attend the Bimstec Summit, to be held on April 4 in Bangkok, raising hope for a first-ever in person meeting with Indian Prime Minister Modi on the sidelines.
Rohingyas are victims of racial discrimination and prolonged statelessness: Prof Yunus
Thailand will host the 6th Summit of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BImstec) and Bangladesh will take responsibility as the next chair of Bimstec there, officials said. Thailand has taken over the Bimstec Chairmanship from Sri Lanka since 30 March 2022.
Bimstec consists of seven member countries, namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Bimstec Secretary General Indra Mani Pandey recently said the Summit will have some significant outcomes. "It will set a direction for the future of Bimstec," he said.
Dr Yunus said Dhaka has always insisted that Bangladesh’s relationship with India will be the best relationship ever.
Because, he explained, the fate of Bangladesh and India is tied together and they cannot be isolated from each other.
“So, we are always encouraging everything to happen in the best possible way,” Dr Yunus told BBC in a most recent interview, adding that the clouds due to some fake news are not part of the relationship that the two countries enjoy.
The Chief Adviser thinks Bangladesh and India have an excellent relationship. “We will continue to do it,” he said, describing India as a good business partner of Bangladesh.
Dr Yunus is scheduled to leave Dhaka on March 26 for China and both the countries are looking forward to a bilateral meeting on March 28 in Beijing between the two leaders – Dr Yunus and Chinese President Xi Jinping.