Bangladesh eyes deeper ties with China as relations with India suffer

By Arun Devnath 

Bangladesh is planning to build closer economic ties with China, and other East Asian economies, at a time when the relationship with India remains strained. 

“We would see more linkages” between China and Bangladesh, Lutfey Siddiqi, an economist and special envoy on international affairs for the interim government of the South Asian nation, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Tuesday. The country, which has historically been a close ally of India, is “very excited” about looking toward East Asian countries, he added. 

 

In an effort to build closer ties with Beijing, Bangladesh’s Foreign Adviser Touhid Hossain is on a state visit to China this week. 

 

“We will have closer links with a wider range of countries. Multilateralism is the order of the day,” Siddiqi said. He expects “more investments from China into Bangladesh,” mentioning renewable energy and solar panels among areas he is interested in exploring with the world’s second-largest economy. 

 

His comments come at a time when relations between India and Bangladesh remain acrimonious. While Dhaka wants New Delhi to return its exiled former leader Sheikh Hasina, Indian officials and news outlets accuse the interim government of failing to protect Hindus in Muslim-majority Bangladesh. A top Indian diplomat visited Dhaka recently to defuse tensions, but that may not be enough to rebuild trust.

 

Meanwhile, Bangladesh continues to grapple with political and economic instability. A violent student-led uprising last year forced long-serving premier Hasina to resign and flee to India, but the interim government has since struggled to restore law and order in the South Asian nation.