Statement
by Hon'ble Foreign Minister on Second Bangladesh-India
Track II dialogue at BRAC Centre on 07 August, 2005
My
esteemed colleague and friend, Mr. Natwar Singh,
Minister for External Affairs of India,
Professor
Rehman Sobhan, Chairman,
Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD)
Ambassador
Deb Mukharjee, Co-Convenor of this series of
discussions on issues of concern to Bangladesh and
India;
Distinguished
participants,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I deem it befitting, that this concluding session
of the Second Bangladesh-India Track II dialogue,
should be addressed by the Foreign Ministers of our
two countries. We have just come out of a constructive
and fruitful Track I dialogue. I am sure my friend
will agree with me that this Track II meet close on
the heels of our bilateral discussions is a remarkable
confluence of events highlighting the importance of
his first ever visit to Bangladesh.
We
are bound by geography as the closest of neighbours.
We share a huge common boundary. We are irrevocably
tied by history, culture, shared traditions and ideas.
We fought together in our Liberation War. We have
both chosen our national anthems from the works of
Tagore. We are committed to pluralism and both countries
have functional democracies. We share a multitude
of common rivers whose waters serve as a lifeline.
We face common challenges to alleviate poverty and
bring development and prosperity to the doorsteps
of our people. In short our lives, hopes and aspiration
are intertwined.
Yet
even the best of neighbours have differences between
them. The important thing to emphasize is that none
of these differences are beyond resolution as long
as we keep our dialogue open, remain engaged with
each other and move forward if need be incrementally.
Today,
the CPD and the India International Center are meeting
once again, as part of a continuous process, to consider
issues of common concern to both Bangladesh and India.
We are conscious of the relevance of this dialogue
particularly because the participants have a direct
stake in promoting good neighbourly relations between
our two countries as many have served as Cabinet Ministers,
former High Commissioners and Foreign Secretaries.
Mr.
Chairman,
As
we take stock of our unique history, age-old interactions
and multi-layered cooperation, the pre-eminent question
that arises is whether we have fully exploited, the
true potential of our relations. While we need to
remain constantly engaged in serious soul searching
in this regard at the government level, our civil
society, academia, professionals and people's representatives
have a key role to play. You can lay the groundwork
and encourage the forces of co-operation through objective
analysis of issues to be addressed. In particular,
you can highlight priorities and their relative importance,
cost and benefits of policy options and the best possible
way to further strengthen our friendship in a constructive
and positive manner. In this last respect, the value
of the type of discussions you can undertake with
your insight, expertise and positive commitment is
unquestionable.
It
is therefore, only natural, that we look to you for
relevant and pragmatic ideas, creative suggestions
and a pro-active role to shore up support at all levels
for sustaining the process of cooperation between
India and Bangladesh. We also need your important
support and serious work to enrich the contents of
our cooperation.
Mr.
Chairman,
I
would like to touch on four areas that can outline
broadly the scope of our interaction. These are (i)
Political interactions and people to people contact
(ii) Economic cooperation (iii) Other areas of cooperation
and (iv) The SAARC process.
POLITICAL
INTERACTIONS AND PEOPLE
TO PEOPLE CONTACT
Since
the present government assumed power in 2001, it has
been our priority to build close relations with all
our neighbours particularly India. The Hon'ble Prime
Minister Begum Khaleda Zia had therefore, instructed
me to proceed to New Delhi as her Special Envoy and
to convey to His Excellency Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh, Her Excellency Sonia Gandhi and my good friend
Natwar Singh our government's strong commitment to
maintain close and friendly relations with India,
as well as our desire to remain engaged in a constructive
dialogue.
I
had occasion once again to visit India as the Prime
Minister's Special Envoy in the context of the 13th
SAARC Summit when I had a series of meetings with
the Indian leadership. The visit was followed up by
a spate of high-level visits including those by the
Ministers of Finance, Health, Commerce, Women's Affairs,
Information and the State Minister for Civil Aviation
and Tourism respectively. On each occasion we were
touched by the warm reception and hospitality and
the common expectations of strengthened friendship
and cooperation.
At
the Civil Society level there has been a ferment of
activity and widespread interaction at many levels
including SACEPS, the meeting of former Foreign Secretaries
and former SAARC Secretary Generals, meetings at the
India International Centre and the meeting on SAFTA
organized by the Council for Social Development and
the Commonwealth Business Council. Their outcomes
provide a fertile base for follow-up by governments.
At
the people to people level there has been widespread
contact and interactions by citizens of both countries
for a variety of reasons including tourism, medical
treatment, professional employment, business, pilgrimage
and for educational purposes. There is substantial
cross cultural and sporting interaction. The list
goes on and on. Contacts at all these levels have
created special bonds which need to be consolidated.
PROMOTING ECONOMIC COOPERATION
Mr.
Chairman,
The
real catalyst to promote Indo-Bangladesh relations
is, of course, strengthening economic co-operation.
I am glad to know that in your present round of discussions
you have devoted considerable attention to this question.
Both our countries, despite the difference in their
size and in terms of vital economic endowments, have
made some remarkable economic achievements in the
past few decades, which they have a right to feel
proud of. However, they are still faced with some
major economic challenges. Both countries are yet
to successfully overcome the scourge of poverty. Social
exclusion of large segments of our populations from
the benefits of growth poses another challenge. The
task of enhancing the capacity of our countries to
benefit from globalisation without unduly exposing
us to the uncertainties inherent in the process also
remains a formidable challenge.
I
am convinced that increasing two-way trade between
our two countries and significantly narrowing the
large imbalance that characterizes it now, is an objective
worth pursuing seriously by both our countries. Bangladesh
is the largest SAARC trading partner of India. We
must take due note of this reality. Our action in
this vital area should naturally be such, that traders
and industries from both the countries feel confident
about shared benefits from further enhancement of
economic cooperation between our two countries. Enhancing
access of Bangladeshi products to India, through concrete
steps, will certainly be welcomed to us. Bangladesh
has one of the most liberal investment regimes in
South Asia.
Within
this framework, we shall continue to encourage trade
creating investment from India that may play its own
important role in increasing trade between our two
countries. A number of projects are now under consideration
between our two countries for Indian investment in
Bangladesh and they are now receiving serious consideration.
An altogether new dynamics of cooperation can be created
once we succeed in our discussions on them. However,
on matters, relating to trade there is a need for
a fresh outlook as to how to materialize progress,
which is feasible. In this regard, bureaucratic procedures
and a narrow perception of what could be the most
profitable option in the short run should not cloud
the vision of what could be achieved on a much larger
scale in the long run. This is particularly so, if
the stakeholders in trade, commerce and industry in
our countries agree to cooperate and feel confident
about the benefits of such cooperation. There is no
other option that holds out a better promise for the
future.
OTHER
AREAS OF COOPERATION
Trade
and investment are the only two areas where we constantly
need to take stock as to whether we are doing enough.
But there are also a host of other areas where cooperation
between India and Bangladesh is of vital importance.
I include here the issue of protecting the delicate
ecological balance in our common home, South Asia;
sharing of water from our common rivers and ensuring
energy security of South Asia as a whole in the context
of a massive projected increase in our energy requirements.
Many of these issues are complex and often have been
the object of protracted consultations at various
levels. Here too, there is a need for constructive
appreciation of forward movement that highlights the
value of cooperation. I am sure we shall spare no
effort at all levels to work on the basis of mutually
beneficial agreement in these areas. There is no dearth
of goodwill, I can assure you, in Bangladesh in this
regard.
SAARC PROCESS
Mr.
Chairman,
Bangladesh
also values the SAARC process as an important arrangement
to imaginatively complement our bilateral efforts.
This is especially so, to address economic challenges
facing the member states. We have a shared stake in
strengthening the SAARC process not only for the opportunities
it opens up for addressing issues which are amenable
only to a regional approach but also because the spirit
of cooperation generated by it can be a plus factor.
A successful SAARC Summit in Dhaka next November,
heralding the beginning of the third decade of SAARC
activities, will be from this perspective a major
watershed. The deliberations that were conducted around
certain core economic issues during the present round
of discussions in this forum will not only be examined
by us for their relevance to Indo-Bangladesh economic
cooperation but also for their possible relevance
to intra-SAARC economic cooperation. I would once
again like to complement you for your sustained interest
in Indo-Bangladesh relations. I assure you of all
our best wishes as you endeavour in your own important
way to create the understanding and environment for
positive progress in our friendly relations which
can be further strengthened with commitment and goodwill
at all levels.
Mr.
Chairman,
I
would like to convey my sense of appreciation to you
once again for inviting me to address your closing
session today, in the august presence of my esteemed
friend Mr. Natwar Singh, the Minister of External
Affairs of India. Our joint presence here only shows
the importance that we attach to your deliberations.
I hope you will continue your important work with
positive results.
I
thank you all.
