Moyeen Khan seeks Bhutan’s support to revive SAARC during PM’s Dhaka stopover

Bangladesh sought Bhutan’s support for reviving SAARC on Friday as Bhutanese Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Tobgay made a brief stopover in Dhaka on his way to Germany.

Local Government Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir received Tobgay at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, where the Bhutanese premier spent about an hour at the VVIP lounge.

The two ministers conveyed greetings from Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and raised Dhaka’s renewed push to revive the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, which has remained largely dormant at the summit level for years.

During the meeting, the Bangladeshi side recalled former president Ziaur Rahman’s role in promoting regional cooperation in South Asia and sought Bhutan’s support for bringing fresh momentum to SAARC.

The brief stopover produced no agreements but followed a series of recent high-level contacts between Dhaka and Thimphu. Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck transited through Dhaka last month, while the two countries held their fourth foreign secretary-level consultations in August.

Reviving SAARC was also discussed during those consultations, alongside cooperation under the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, or BIMSTEC.

Friday’s talks also covered Bhutan’s Gelephu Mindfulness City, a major economic development project being built near the Indian border. Bangladesh expressed interest in supplying professionals and skilled workers for the project.

Bangladesh and Bhutan have maintained close relations since 1971, when Bhutan became the first country to recognise Bangladesh’s independence. Bilateral cooperation has since expanded into trade, energy, tourism and education.

Founded in 1985, the eight-member SAARC has been effectively frozen at the summit level amid longstanding tensions between India and Pakistan. Its last summit was held in Kathmandu in 2014, while a planned summit in Islamabad in 2016 was cancelled.

Dhaka has recently stepped up calls to reactivate the regional grouping as it seeks greater South Asian cooperation on trade, connectivity, climate change and other cross-border challenges.

Tobgay departed for Germany about an hour after arriving in Dhaka. No breakthrough on SAARC was announced during the stopover.

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