Pakistan, Bangladesh revive high-level talks after 15 years

ISLAMABAD: After a hiatus of 15 years, Thursday finally saw high-level diplomatic engagement between Pakistan and Bangladesh when the 6th round of Foreign Secretary Level Consultations (FSLC) took place in Dhaka. The 7th round of the FSLC would take place in Islamabad in 2026.

“The Pakistan side was led by Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch, while Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin led Bangladesh side,” announced the Foreign Office here. Both sides had a constructive and forward-looking engagement in a cordial environment where the entire spectrum of Pakistan-Bangladesh bilateral relations came under discussion. “Discussions included political, economic and trade relations, cooperation in agriculture, environment and education, cultural exchanges, defence relations and people-to-people contacts. Also, new avenues of cooperation were explored by the two sides,” said the FO.

Bangladesh media commented that the talks were preparatory for Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar’s visit at the end of April. While the FO here has not confirmed dates for Dar’s visit, he will be the first-ever foreign minister of Pakistan to visit Bangladesh on a bilateral visit.

Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch also called on Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, where both discussed the revival of Saarc. Earlier, Yunus had sought Pakistan’s support for the revival of Saarc during a meeting with Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. Besides, trade and investment opportunities, youth linkages and regional integration were also discussed. Dr Yunus also shared his vision for Pakistan-Bangladesh bilateral relations. “While thanking Prof Yunus, Amna Baloch conveyed best wishes to him from the Pakistani leadership,” said the FO.

The foreign secretary also called on Advisor on Foreign Affairs Touhid Hossain and discussed regional issues, revival of Saarc and bilateral trade and economic relations.

The relations between the two states have been on an upward trajectory ever since Sheikh Hasina fled to India, and trade relations have taken a front seat. There has also been an increase in education collaboration with Pakistan, offering 300 fully funded scholarships to Bangladeshi students. In addition to economic, cultural and educational ties, there have also been significant developments in defence cooperation when, in January, senior military officials from Bangladesh visited Rawalpindi for the first time.

Bangladesh has also eased visa restrictions for Pakistani nationals and launched direct shipping links. Direct flights between the two sides are also set to start soon.

Meanwhile, putting its weight behind Pakistan’s GSP+ status, Hungary has agreed on expanding cooperation with Pakistan across key sectors and strengthening collaboration at multilateral forums, including the United Nations, state-run radio reported. The understanding was reached during a meeting between Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó in Islamabad. Speaking at a joint news conference, Dar said both countries shared common interests in agriculture, energy, healthcare, information technology and industrial manufacturing, adding, there was “vast potential” to scale up bilateral ties.

Szijjártó, for his part, backed the extension of Pakistan’s GSP Plus status beyond 2027, calling it a “mutual interest” of both Pakistan and the European Union. The minister said Hungarian companies had completed successful food security and water management projects in Pakistan and highlighted a growing trade volume. He also announced 400 annual scholarships for Pakistani students and said a 17-member Hungarian business delegation accompanied him to explore cooperation in education, agriculture, medical science, water management and energy.

Earlier, the two sides signed an agreement on mutual visa exemption for diplomatic passport holders and two memoranda of understanding on cooperation in culture and archaeology. Separately, FM Dar said that he will visit Kabul in the coming days. “Preparatory meetings have been ongoing and hopefully, within days, I will be visiting Kabul for a day to break this logjam which is there for the last few years,” he said, according to AFP.