PM Hasina scheduled to pay official visits to Spain, Brazil this month

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to pay official visits to Spain and Brazil from 21 July to further strengthen ties with these two countries engaging in broader areas of cooperation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is taking preparations for these two separate bilateral visits, officials said.  

Prime Minister Hasina's official visit to Madrid, Spain is tentatively planned on 21-23 July, a senior ministry official said.

After completion of her visit to Spain, she is likely to pay an official visit to Brazil on 24-26 July with a likely stopover in London, he said, adding that these are tentative schedules.

Brazilian Ambassador Paulo Fernando Dias Feres recently said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to Brazil will be "bilateral" in nature.

Brazil, South America's most influential country, wants to strengthen its ties with Bangladesh on key fronts with a possible visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Earlier, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva invited the Prime Minister to pay a bilateral visit to Brazil.

"This is a bilateral visit. It's just her. The idea is that she can launch with President Lula the global programme against hunger and then she will go to Brasilia for all the ceremonies of a full opera visit. So that's the idea," said Brazilian Ambassador Paulo Fernando Dias Feres while talking to diplomatic correspondents at "DCAB Talk" at Jatiya Press Club recently.

This will be the first bilateral visit of the prime minister to any Latin American country which is seen as a rising economic power and one of the world's biggest democracies.

Brazil is planning to open a visa centre in Bangladesh to facilitate more people-to-people contact as the demand grows by the day.

Bangladesh will emphasise the need for increased trade and commerce with Spain to foster mutual cooperation and benefits.