Bangladesh has signed one bilateral agreement and five Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Pakistan to strengthen bilateral relations.

Foreign Adviser Touhid Hossain said this at a press briefing after a meeting with Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar at Hotel Sonargaon in Dhaka on Sunday.

The agreement is on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders of Bangladesh and Pakistan.

The MoUs are the formation of a joint working group on trade between the two countries, cooperation between the Foreign Service academies of both countries, collaboration between the national news agencies of the two countries (BSS and APPPC) and cooperation between Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and Pakistan’s Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI).

Both sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including high-level exchanges, trade and economic cooperation, people-to-people contacts, cultural exchanges, cooperation on education and capacity building and humanitarian issues.

Regional and international issues, including rejuvenation of SAARC and resolution of Palestine and the Rohingya issue, were also discussed.

The talks took place in a ‘constructive atmosphere’, reflecting the existing goodwill and cordiality between two countries. Both sides agreed to work for further strengthening of bilateral relations, said the Pakistan side.

The Foreign Adviser told reporters that both sides have agreed to resolve the long-standing unsettled issues between the two countries.

“We have brought up all three of our unsettled issues and they have shared theirs. We have agreed to work on resolving them to further strengthen our bilateral ties,” he added.

For Bangladesh, the adviser said, the three unresolved issues are an official apology for the 1971 Liberation War genocide, the return of due assets and the repatriation of stranded Pakistanis.

He also said it is impossible to resolve these issues that have persisted for 54 years in a single day, but efforts will continue.

During the meeting, the two sides stressed strengthening trade relations and expanding investment, as yearly turnover between the countries is below $ 1 billion, he said.

Bangladesh wanted some facilities to the Pakistani bazars under SAFTA to export textile, energy, medicine, agriculture products and information technology, the adviser added.

Bangladesh-Pakistan Knowledge Corridor

Coinciding with the visit of the Pakistan Foreign Minister, a Bangladesh-Pakistan Knowledge Corridor was launched.

The project envisages grant of 500 scholarships to Bangladeshi students for pursuing higher studies in Pakistan during the next five years.

A quarter of these scholarships will be awarded in the field of medicine.

Besides, training for 100 Bangladeshi civil servants will be arranged during the same period.

Pakistan also decided to increase the scholarships allocated to Bangladeshi students under the Pakistan Technical Assistance Program from 5 to 25, according to the Pakistan Foreign Ministry.

Other Meetings, Reception

The Foreign Adviser of Bangladesh also hosted a lunch in honour of the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar had a breakfast meeting with Bangladesh Adviser for Commerce Sk Bashir Uddin.

Minister of Commerce Jam Khamal Khan also joined the meeting.

The Commerce Adviser was accompanied by Chowdhury Ashik Mahmud Bin Harun, Chairman, Bangladesh Investment Development Authority, Dr Ahsan H Mansur, Governor, Bangladesh Bank, Md Abdur Rahman Khan, Chairman, National Board of Revenue of Revenue and Secretary, Internal Resources Division, Md Abdur Rauf, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles and Jute Moinul Khan, Chairman, Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission, Nasreen Jahan, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, Mahbubur Rahman, Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, Brigadier General Mohammad Foyshol Azad, Chairman, Trading Corporation of Bangladesh and Md Iqbal Hussain Khan, High Commissioner of Bangladesh to Pakistan

The two sides discussed ways to promote economic and commercial cooperation, with a special focus on enhancing trade and promoting connectivity.

The Pak Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister attended a reception hosted in his honour by the High Commissioner of Pakistan to Bangladesh Imran Haider.

At the reception, Ishaq Dar interacted with a number of personalities from different walks of life, including Bangladesh government advisers, bureaucrats, leadership of political parties, vice chancellors, members of intelligentsia and think tanks, sportsmen, artists, journalists, retired generals and others.

Pakistan’s Minister for Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan, also attended the reception.

In his remarks at the reception, Ishaq Dar underscored that the people of Pakistan had fraternal sentiments towards the people of Bangladesh.

He said the relations between the two countries were anchored in centuries-old shared traditions, Islamic heritage, social norms and literary expressions.

Wishing the people of Bangladesh a harmonious and prosperous future, he expressed Pakistan’s strong desire to forge a cooperative and forward-looking relationship with Bangladesh.

Ishaq Dar arrived in Dhaka on Saturday on a two-day official visit at the invitation of the government of Bangladesh.

He is also scheduled to meet Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus and Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin.