India, Bangladesh Hold Talks On Teesta River Dispute, Trade, Security

India and Bangladesh on Friday vowed to bolster cooperation in key areas such as security, trade, and regional connectivity.

At the foreign secretary-level meeting here, the two sides also discussed the Teesta River dispute and other water-sharing treaties.

The deliberations happened during the 'India-Bangladesh Foreign Office Consultations', with India being represented by Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra and the Bangladesh side by Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen.

The Indian side appreciated its neighbouring nation's participation in the recently held virtual G20 summit and the Voice of Global South Summit 2.0, said a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs.

🇮🇳-🇧🇩 FOC held in New Delhi today.

Led by Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra & Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen of Bangladesh.

They held productive exchanges on a diverse range of issues including border & security, economic ties & connectivity, power, water sharing, development… pic.twitter.com/SM0jUIJLxI

— Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) November 24, 2023

Besides trade and security, both sides held comprehensive discussions on people-to-people ties and development cooperation in Bangladesh, the statement said.

The two countries also exchanged views on sub regional, regional, and multilateral issues, it said.

A statement issued by the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said Foreign Secretary Momen raised some key issues including the early conclusion of the Teesta agreement and other water-sharing treaties of common rivers, removing trade barriers from Bangladesh's exportable goods and uninterrupted supply of essential commodities between the two countries.

The Bangladesh foreign secretary also sought India's assistance in resolving the Rohingya crisis.

Mr Momen thanked the government for inviting the Bangladesh prime minister to attend the G20 Leaders' Summit as the only South Asian leader under India's G20 presidency.

Both the foreign secretaries expressed satisfaction over the existing bilateral relations and the progress made in 2023, the statement from Bangladesh said.

The two sides further emphasized bolstering cooperation in important areas such as development, trade and commerce, regional connectivity, regional power grid connection, security and water related issues, consular and cultural issues, it said.  Foreign Office Consultations is an institutional dialogue mechanism between the two foreign secretaries to review the entire gamut of bilateral relationship.

It was agreed that the next Foreign Office Consultations will be hosted in Bangladesh.