Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has chosen Malaysia and China for his first foreign visit to expand overseas employment opportunities and drum up investments, signalling his foreign policy priorities by bypassing India, which has traditionally been the destination for such trips.
Rahman, who is set to begin the trip on Sunday, will make a two-day visit to Malaysia, which is expected to focus on trade, investment, energy cooperation, semiconductors, and new avenues for Bangladeshi workers. He will then travel to China for a four-day visit, during which he will participate in the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions, known as the “Summer Davos,” and meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.
Bangladesh and China are expected to sign up to 17 bilateral instruments, including 13 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and an action plan, during the visit, foreign secretary Asad Alam Siam told reporters in Dhaka on Saturday. He said discussions on a project to restore and manage the Teesta river through dredging and embankment construction would be on the agenda. Another agreement relates to Chinese participation in modernising Mongla port.
The visit is being seen as a major diplomatic initiative aimed at strengthening Bangladesh’s economic partnerships, attracting foreign investment and enhancing regional connectivity, Siam said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sent an invitation for Rahman to visit India when Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla travelled to Dhaka in February to participate in the Bangladesh premier’s swearing-in ceremony. This was part of New Delhi’s outreach to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party following its victory in the general election.
In the months prior to the formal announcement of Rahman’s visit, there had been speculation that he would make a South Asian nation such as Bhutan or the Maldives the destination of his first foreign visit, before undertaking trips to other countries.
Rahman’s decision to travel to Malaysia first is being seen as part of his government’s careful balancing between India and China in line with its “Bangladesh First” policy. Malaysia is also home to almost 800,000 Bangladeshi workers, almost a third of the country’s foreign workforce.
Reports in Bangladeshi media said Bangladesh and China are expected to issue a joint communiqué after almost two decades, and Dhaka is expected to sign on to Beijing’s Global Development Initiative, a key foreign policy framework unveiled by President Xi in 2021. These measures will help shift China’s cooperation with Bangladesh from project-driven initiatives to deeper political and economic engagement.
The Indian side has kept a wary eye on Bangladesh’s efforts to rope in China to develop the Teesta, the only one of 54 cross-border rivers on which New Delhi and Dhaka have yet to reach an agreement. India’s concerns largely centre on China gaining access to areas in Bangladesh near the Siliguri Corridor, or the so-called “chicken’s neck” that links the northeastern states to other parts of the country.
The Bangladesh government recently approved a $340-million infrastructure project for the Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone in Chittagong, backed by concessional Chinese loans.
Though ties between India and Bangladesh improved after Rahman’s election victory, irritants remain in the overall relationship. Former Bangladesh premier Sheikh Hasina’s presence in India continues to be a source of friction, and ties have been hit by authorities in West Bengal and Assam “pushing back” people deemed illegal migrants across the border.
