Hasina, five other South Asian leaders agree to Modi’s proposal on coronavirus talks

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is ready to hold talks with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi and other South Asian leaders over the coronavirus, Shahriar Alam says.

Modi on Friday proposed the discussion via video conferencing on “ways to keep our citizens healthy”.

“I would like to propose that the leadership of SAARC nations chalk out a strong strategy to fight Coronavirus,” he said.

“Together, we can set an example to the world, and contribute to a healthier planet,” Modi added.

Shahriar, the state minister for foreign affairs, re-tweeted Modi’s post later.

Hasina “welcomes the proposal and look forward to a constructive dialogue” with Modi and the other heads of government or state who have “already consented to discuss (the) way forward at this testing time for the region and the world”, he said.

Shahriar mentioned the Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Bhutan Prime Minister Lotay Tshering, and Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in the re-tweet. Besides them or their spokespeople, the Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani also backed the move.

 

India’s influential newspaper The Hindu wrote: “India has been coordinating bilaterally with countries like Italy and Iran for evacuation but this is the first time that the Indian leadership has called for a joint action by SAARC, which has been stuck because of India-Pakistan hostilities.”

India confirmed its first death from coronavirus on Thursday. The other nations in the region, including Bangladesh, have also reported infections as the global death toll crossed 5,000 and the number of confirmed cases stood over 132,000 on Friday.