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Foreign Policy of Bangladesh 1996-2001
BILATERAL ACHIEVEMENTS Bangladesh and her neighbours The assessment of success of a state’s foreign policy must begin with the relations it enjoys with its neighbours. Before the assumption of office of the present government, Bangladesh’s relations with its neighbours did not show any progress. Rather, the mistrust and suspicion that had prevailed since the murder of the Father of the Nation continued to bedevil relations. Besides political relations, trade and commerce with the neighbouring countries were also negligible and the sense of inactivity was omnipresent. Surely, this was not in the best interest of the country or for its people. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, therefore, took on the challenge of improving bilateral relations with the neighbouring countries as a priority. She had the vision that petty political interests should not be placed above the interests of the state. India An important factor in Bangladesh’s foreign policy is her relations with her most immediate and largest neighbour, India. India constitutes a key factor in Bangladesh’s foreign relations having important bearing for national security, regional stability as well as immediate medium and long-term economic implications for Bangladesh. Recognizing the geo-politico-strategic and economic dimension of this relationship, the present government immediately after coming to office, made ever effort to improve and strengthen relations with India to resolve outstanding issues speedily and to develop enduring and evolving partnership with India on the basis of sovereign equality. A landmark achievement of the present Government in its relations with India has been the signing of the Agreement on Sharing of the Ganges Water in 1996. Signing of this historic Agreement removed a long outstanding irritant between the two countries and ushered in a new era of peaceful coexistence and meaningful cooperation between them. Following the signing of the Ganges Water Agreement, during the last four seasons Bangladesh has received its due share of water. Regular flow of water has alleviated the suffering of the people of the northwestern districts of Bangladesh and has substantially contributed to agriculture production in the region. Furthermore, for the first time India has also agreed to the possibility of exchange of data for effective flood management and to render assistance to conduct feasibility stud on the construction of Ganges Barrage. In yet another significant achievement, the decade-old Chakma refugee problem was brought to an end by the present government through the signing of the CHT Peace Accord with PCJSS in December 1997. This has restored peace and tranquility in this area and has paved the way for socio-economic development of the hill districts. The success of the present government in garnering the support of the Indian government in the repatriation process of the Chakma refugees from India and the cessation of hostilities by armed insurgents against Bangladesh interests was a major diplomatic achievement. This was widely hailed by the international community as a major step towards consolidating the rights of the minorities and for restoring peace in the country, as a recognition of which UNESCO conferred on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina the internationally prestigious Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize. Besides resolving long-standing political issues, there has been significant progress in cooperation in other areas, most notably in the development and restoration of road and rail linkages between the two countries. The introduction of the Dhaka-Calcutta direct bus service, which was formally launched in June 1999, has fulfilled the long cherished dream of the peoples of the two countries. During the launching of the bus service, the Indian Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee visited Bangladesh. Agreement in principle has been reached for establishing more direct bus services through other routes, namely, the Dhaka-Agartala and Dhaka-Sylhet-Shillong-Gauhati to facilitate greater people-to-people contract. The Benapole-petrapole Railway link, which has bee restored, is expected to facilitate goods/cargo movement between the two countries. Pakistan Despite bitter memories of the past, bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan have steadily progressed, notwithstanding occasional hiccups. Pakistan’s reluctance to accept moral responsibilities for atrocities committed in Bangladesh in 1971 continues to impede healthy development of bilateral relations. Furthermore, repatriation of stranded Pakistanis and the question of division of assets are also major irritants that stand in the way of a steady growth in Bangladesh-Pakistan relations. During the last four and a half years, Bangladesh has continued to impress upon Pakistan to resolve these issues in the interest of developing bilateral relations. The repatriation of the nearly 2,50,000 stranded Pakistanis who had opted for Pakistan, also remains a bone of contention between the two countries, despite persistent efforts on Bangladesh’s part to resolve the matter, which is more humanitarian and social in nature, besides being political and legal. Bangladesh’s contention is that Pakistan has a moral and legal obligation to take them back under the Delhi Agreement of 1973 and the Tripartite Agreement of 1974. On another outstanding use- the question of division of assets, both countries have agreed that the matter would be a ken at the level of Foreign Secretaries. The atrocities committed in Bangladesh by the Pakistani forces in 1971, was never taken up with Pakistan by any of the previous governments since the assassination of the Father of the Nation. Pakistan has not offered any apology for the genocide conducted by the Pakistani army on the people of Bangladesh in 1971. While the present government is keen to develop healthy bilateral relations with Pakistan, it would never compromise on the history of the Liberation War and its ethos. Therefore, immediately upon assuming office, Prime Minis4ter Sheikh Hasina took up the matter with the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Nawaz Sharif during his official visit to Bangladesh in 1997. It was a perfectly legitimate demand and nations that have suffered genocide in the hands of occupation forces such as those committed by the Nazis and the Japanese occupation forces during the Second World War, have indeed demanded apologies and compensation. He moral strength of the Prime Minister’s demand had a profound impact in Pakistan as is evident from the increasing number of politicians and intellectuals in that country favouring an apology from Pakistan to Bangladesh for the 1971 atrocities. Recognizing the importance of healthy and constructive relations with neighbouring countries, despite the many unresolved issued between the two countries, the present government has actively followed a policy of engagement with Pakistan. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s bold initiative to host the Tripartite Business Summit between the Heads of Government of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan in 1997 vindicated her keen desire to foster peace in the South Asian subcontinent and usher in economic cooperation. This being the first ever such meeting in the history of the Heads of Government of the three subcontinent countries, made a significant contribution to promote understanding among them and for peace and stability in the region. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina further demonstrated her statespersonship in 1998 when she visited India and Pakistan following the nuclear bomb explosion by the two countries. Her visits were inspired by her commitment to peace and nuclear disarmament and to underscore on the need to utilize the scarce resources of the region for the socio-economic development of the people. Her visits were viewed and acclaimed internationally as a sobering influence in what otherwise could have been an explosive situation. In August 2000, the Hon’ble Prime Minister sent her Special Envoy to India and Pakistan, in an effort to defuse the tension between the two nuclear powers. Sri Lanka The present government has given equal importance to strengthen friendly relations with the other neighboring countries. Sri Lanka is one of Bangladesh’s closest neighbors, both sharing man common traditions and cultural practices. And yet full potential to develop relations with Air Lanka was not fly exploited. The present government undertook positive initiatives to further develop bilateral relations with Sri Lanka and its efforts have shown positive results, both in depth and in dimension. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to Sri Lanka in July 1998 for the 10th SAARC Summit and the visit of the Foreign Minister in 1998 opened new vistas in the bilateral relations between the two countries. A reflection of the increasing goodwill between the two countries has been the considerable increase in trade an other areas of economic cooperation between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Among the man significant developments have been the establishment of direct air link between Dhaka and Colombo in July 2000, increase in Sri Lanka investment in Bangladesh in various sectors, and the launching of the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh Business Council in Colombo in February 1999. Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives Similar initiatives were undertaken by the present government to strengthen relations with Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives. One of the major developments in Bangladesh-Nepal relations was the opening of the Kakarbhitta-Phulbari-Banglabandh-Mongla transit route, providing Nepal an access to and from the sea through territories of India and Bangladesh. The visits of the Hon’ble Foreign Minister to Nepal and his counterpart to Dhaka has contributed significantly to open new vistas of economic cooperation between the two countries. Agreements have been signed, providing Nepal with special facilities and preferential treatment at Mongla Port, Larger number of railway wagons for lifting increased cargo for bilateral as well as transit trade. Bangladesh has also assured Nepal that it would consider installation of improved infrastructure including customs, immigration, banking and telecommunication facilities at Bangabandhu to further facilitate transit and trade between the two countries. Bhutan being the second country to recognize Bangladesh enjoys special relations with Bangladesh. The present government attaches importance to the broad-based identity, commitment and convergence of the interests that forms the foundations of strong bilateral ties. Membership of LDC, deep commitment to the aspiration of SAARC and adherence to the principles of non-alignment, have brought the two countries closer for promoting regional and international peace. Relations with the Maldives, which accorded recognition to Bangladesh as early as April 12, 1972, developed substantially over the years with several bilateral agreements signed so far. Bangladesh relations with the Maldives wee put on solid foundations when the present government decided to set up a resident mission in he capital of the Maldives. Male in 1998. This was seen a positive step towards further consolidating relations and enhancing cooperation in various fields in the years ahead. There is at present about five thousand expatriate Bangladeshis in Maldives who are contributing to the development of Maldives economy and bringing in foreign exchange earnings for the country.
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