Bangladesh-India secretary-level talks on 9 or 10 December: Adviser Touhid
It is very clear that we want a good relationship with India, he says
The scheduled Foreign Secretary-level Foreign Office Consultation (FOC) between Bangladesh and India will take place in Dhaka on 9 or 10 December, Foreign Adviser Md Touhid Hosain said today (4 December).
"It is very clear that we want a good relationship with India," he told reporters at the foreign ministry this afternoon.
However, the foreign adviser emphasised that relations between Bangladesh and India must be built on a reciprocal basis. "Both sides need to want that and should work for it," he added.
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Touhid mentioned that while the FOC is scheduled for 10 December, it might be held a day earlier.
During the high-level consultation, Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin and Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will lead their respective delegations.
The discussions are expected to cover a range of bilateral issues, including the potential extradition of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, currently in India, and visa-related matters.
Ousted Sheikh Hasina, who fled Dhaka on 5 August and has been residing in India since then, is facing trial in Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal for alleged involvement in mass killings during the July-August uprising.
At the foreign ministry's weekly briefing on 21 November, Director General of the Public Diplomacy Wing Toufique Hasan confirmed that an inter-ministerial meeting had already been held to coordinate preparations for the upcoming talks.
