Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain and Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held a meeting on Sunday morning (Aug 24) in Dhaka, as part of the latter’s official visit to Bangladesh.
The high-level meeting took place at 10:00 am at Hotel Sonargaon in the capital.
While the specific details of the closed-door discussion were not immediately disclosed, the engagement was followed by a formal round of talks between delegations from both countries.
According to diplomatic sources, preparations are underway for the signing of six bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) following the delegation-level talks.
These prospective accords aim to enhance cooperation across diplomatic, economic, and strategic sectors.
Among the agreements under preparation is a deal for visa exemptions for holders of official and diplomatic passports. In addition, both sides are planning to form a joint working group on trade, enhance cultural exchanges, and strengthen institutional collaboration between their respective foreign service academies. Cooperation is also anticipated between the state-run news agencies of both countries, along with a memorandum of understanding between the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and the Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) of Pakistan.
The visit marks a notable development in regional diplomacy, with Ishaq Dar arriving in Dhaka on Saturday aboard a special flight. He was received at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by Asad Alam Siam, Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On the first day of his visit, the Pakistani Foreign Minister met with leaders of Bangladesh’s opposition parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Jamaat-e-Islami, and the Nationalist Democratic Movement (NCP). He also attended a reception hosted at Pakistan House in the capital.
Ishaq Dar is scheduled to meet with Chief Adviser Professor Dr Muhammad Yunus on Sunday, the second day of his engagements in Dhaka.
SMS/
