All agreements with India will be disclosed to the public: Foreign Minister

Bangladesh and India are expected to sign 35 agreements and memoranda of understanding during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to New Delhi, Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said on Tuesday.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 4 April 2017, 12:08 PM
Updated : 4 April 2017, 05:16 PM

All agreements will be made public, Ali said at a media briefing in Dhaka.

The prime minister will fly to India on Apr 7 and return to Dhaka on Apr 10.

The deals to be signed are tied to the establishment of border posts, information exchange, nuclear power, science, technology, electricity, energy and defence, the minister said.

Asked about the defence agreements, Ali responded, “You will be able to see for yourselves. Nothing about this will be kept secret.”

The possibility of defence deals between the two countries has drawn the most attention in Bangladesh. The BNP has raised questions about the necessity of such agreements, claiming the government wanted to ‘sell off’ the nation’s sovereignty.

“Once these are published, you will see there is no merit to the accusations made by our detractors,” Ali said.

“You just have to be patient.”

Asked about the possibility of a breakthrough on the Teesta water sharing agreement, Ali said he would not go into specifics.

“Relations between our countries have reached such a level that the particulars are not too important. We do not wish to discuss the specifics at this moment.”