India hopes arbitration would help solve maritime disputes
Press Trust of India / Dhaka Oct 24, 2009, 11:41 IST
India has expressed the hope that Bangladesh's decision to seek arbitration in an international tribunal will settle the maritime disputes between the two countries as bilateral negotiations on the issue could make "little headway".
"We think the UN arbitration can resolve the dispute as the bilateral negotiations on the issue could make little headway," Indian High Commissioner Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty told 'Samakal' newspaper.
He said the two countries also did not take much effort to solve the issue bilaterally as "Bangladesh and India had discussions on the issue 22 years ago and twice recently".
Bangladesh had recently decided to seek resolution of its maritime disputes with India and Myanmar in an international tribunal through arbitration, saying the current negotiations with the neighbours were unlikely to settle the issue in the near future.
Meanwhile, Myanmar's envoy said Phae Thann Oo his country was "a little disappointed" by Dhaka's decision earlier this month to seek resolution of its maritime disputes in the UN tribunal.
"We are a little (bit)disappointed. We don't think it is necessary to go for arbitration," he told private UNB news agency.
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