Defence deal tops agenda [ Tritiyo Matra News ]

Defence deal tops agenda

Local April 08, 2017

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi are set for official talks in New Delhi today, with the signing of a deal on defence cooperation framework and over 30 other agreements on the plate, according to officials.
Sheikh Hasina reached the Air Force Station Palam of New Delhi on Friday afternoon on a four-day state visit. Modi received her at the station.
Indian external affairs ministry, in a tweet, described Modi’s presence to receive Hasina as ‘a special gesture for a special friend.’
In another tweet, Modi said he was ‘delighted to welcome’ the Bangladesh PM. ‘PM Sheikh Hasina and I are determined to take the relationship between our nations to a new level,’ reads the message on the social media.
Bangladesh, in the talks, will push for greater cooperation in the water sector, including signing of Teesta water sharing agreement at the earliest for paving ways of sharing water of other common rivers.
As there is no possibility of signing an agreement on Teesta water sharing during this visit, Bangladesh officials continued informal meetings and communications on Friday with the Indian authorities for at least setting up a deadline for inking the deal.
The Bangladesh side was
also asking for a timeline for Indian concurrence for joint construction of the Padma-Ganges Barrage in Rajbari.
The two countries, at the request of India, are set for signing a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation framework with provisions, among others, for information sharing, commercial engagement and holding annual consultations among top leaderships of the armed forces and defence ministries of the two countries.
The deal is meant for five years and with provisions for auto renewal.
Another memorandum would be signed opening a new line of credit for about $500 million from India for defence purchase.
Matters relating to removal of anti-dumping duty imposed by the Indian government on Bangladesh’s export of jute and jute products, multifaceted connectivity, expansion of trade, increase of Indian investment in Bangladesh, curb on human trafficking and drugs smuggling, among others, would come up for discussion during the talks.
Over 30 deals, including a memorandum of understanding opening a third line of credit for about $4.5 billion from India under conditions usually applied for supplier’s credit for 18 development projects, would be signed after the talks today.
The other deals involve areas of information communication technology, satellite, geological science, border hat and community clinic.
Foreign secretary M Shahidul Haque, who reached New Delhi two days ago for preparations on substantive issues and potential outcome of the visit, held a meeting with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Friday, diplomats said.
Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to attend a ceremonial reception, with presence of Modi, at the President’s House this morning. She will go to Rajghat, memorial of Mahatma Gandhi, to pay respect to him.
The two prime ministers will hold a one-on-one meeting, before the official talks with participation of other delegation members, today.
The Indian government would publish the Hindi version of The Unfinished Memoirs, autobiography by Bangladesh’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, during the visit.
Bangladesh PM will hand over Liberation War Honour to family members of seven Indian martyred soldiers for their supreme sacrifice in the 1971 War of Independence today as part of according such honour to 1,661 deceased Indian soldiers.
Hasina would call on Indian president Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday. Indian National Congress president Sonia Gandhi and external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj would call on the Bangladesh prime minister.
Sheikh Hasina was staying at the President’s House during the visit at the invitation of Pranab Mukherjee.
India’s external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj called on Bangladesh PM at the President’s House.
Indian government on Friday renamed the Park Street of New Delhi in the name of Bangladesh’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Sheikh Hasina joined a reception at the Bangladesh high commissioner’s residence at New Delhi diplomatic enclave.
Indian central railway minister Suresh Prabhu, state minister for heavy industries and public enterprises Babul Supriyo, external affairs secretary S Jaishankar, scores of foreign ambassadors with concurrently accredited to Bangladesh and former senior Indian diplomats to Bangladesh attended the reception.
She was leading a 40-member official delegation, including foreign minister AH Mahmood Ali, law minister Anisul Huq, water resources minister Anisul Islam Mahmud, liberation war affairs minister AKM Mozammel Haque, prime minister’s adviser Moshiur Rahman, state minister for foreign affairs M Shahriar Alam and foreign secretary M Shahidul Haque.
Hasina and select members of the delegation would travel to Ajmer in Rajsthan to pray at the shrine of Khawja Moinuddin Chishti on April 9. She would address a business conclave in New Delhi on April 10.
Over 200 businesspersons and a 60-member support team, including a pool of security personnel, would be in India during the visit.
Sheikh Hasina would return home on Monday.