Dhaka, Bangkok agree to take ties to new high

They want to double bilateral trade by 2016

 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina shakes hand with her Thai counterpart Yingluck Shinawatra at the Prime Minister's Office in Dhaka on Saturday. 

Bangladesh and Thailand on Saturday agreed to increase mutual cooperation in some specific areas envisaging to doubling the bilateral trade by 2016.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Thai counterpart Yingluck Shinawatra acknowledged the importance of enhancing connectivity between the two nations through increased regional cooperation and developing roads and shipping infrastructures linking Bangladesh and Thailand.
The two premiers en-tasked the Bangladesh-Thailand Joint Commission to discuss and make recommendations on specific areas of cooperation with a major focus on connectivity, according to a joint statement signed on Saturday on the occasion of the Thai premier’s visit to
Bangladesh.
The two sides recognised that the region is being increasingly used by criminals for arms, drugs and human trafficking. The two leaders expressed concern about the serious challenge posed by the threats of terrorism and condemned it in all its forms and manifestations.
The two prime ministers noted with satisfaction that bilateral trade has increased by over 65 percent in the last year (FY 2009-10 to FY 2010-11) and has crossed the US$ 1 billion mark in 2011.
The Thai side welcomed a proposal for extending the Memorandum of Understanding for further three years until 2016 under which Bangladesh agrees to purchase up to one million tonnes of Thai parboiled rice a year as and when need.
Hasina and Shinawatra agreed that there is potential to set up either fully owned or joint venture industries/projects in Bangladesh.
The Bangladesh prime minister invited the Thai private sector to invest in infrastructure development, food processing and power generation sectors.
Besides, the two sides agreed to explore the possibilities of cooperation between their respective oil and gas companies in Exploration and Production (E&P) opportunities in Bangladesh.
Both sides agreed to facilitate increased trade of each other's products and services. The two sides also agreed that efforts should be made to reduce the existing trade imbalance between the two countries.
The Thai prime minister welcomed Bangladesh’s plan to hold a Single Country Fair in Thailand in 2013.
Both the prime ministers also agreed to establish a Joint Working Group to enhance and strengthen cooperation in health services and related areas, such as investment in hospitals in Bangladesh and medical tourism in Thailand.
The Bangladesh prime minister invited the Thai business leaders to develop and set up industrial estates in the ‘Special Economic Zones’ in Bangladesh.
The Bangladesh side noted with appreciation the decision of the Thai side to recruit workers from Bangladesh to work in the fisheries sector of Thailand.
The two premiers underscored the need for having a bilateral institutional arrangement for effective regulation of the recruitment and employment process.
It was agreed that Thailand would provide Technical Assistance to conduct an in-depth study for the development of the tourism sector in Bangladesh. It was also agreed that Thailand would actively consider investment opportunities in the tourism and hospitality industry in Bangladesh, specifically to develop eco-friendly and Buddhist-circuit tourism.
They agreed to revitalise the existing Thai-Bangladesh Joint Trade Committee as a mechanism to enhance bilateral trade and investment.
It was also agreed that the next meeting of the Joint Trade Committee will be convened in the first quarter of 2013.
The Thai prime minister shared the view that Ranong Port of Thailand with expanded capacity could be a new gateway to accommodate trade expansion between Bangladesh and Thailand.
Hasina and Shinawatra agreed to deepen cultural ties through cultural exchanges in building a greater understanding between the people of the two countries.
The two sides expressed satisfaction at the ongoing technical cooperation programmes which are the important aspects of their bilateral relations.
The two sides noted with satisfaction the level of defense cooperation between the two countries and acknowledged that expanding cooperation would be mutually beneficial in addressing shared challenges and concerns.
Both sides voiced satisfaction at the ongoing cooperation on combined/joint exercise. In this connection, Thailand highly appreciated Bangladesh’s active continued participation in the Cobra Gold Exercise as part of the Multinational Planning Augmentation Team (MPAT).
Both sides also agreed to further elevate the defense cooperation to a higher plane.
The prime ministers welcomed the ongoing cooperation under various regional bodies and expressed their resolve to further enhance their partnership and cooperation in the context of Bimstec, ARF and ACD.
Both prime ministers supported the formation of the Asean Community by 2015 as an important step towards greater integration and prosperity in Southeast Asia.
Thailand’s active role in and contribution to Asean’s ongoing community building efforts were recognised by Bangladesh.
The Thai side said Bangladesh’s interest and will give favourable consideration to Bangladesh to join the East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) and Mekong-Ganges Cooperation.
The two leaders acknowledged the important role of Bimstec in strengthening closer cooperation in South and South-East Asia. The prime ministers reiterated their firm commitment to promote closer engagement for mutual benefits of the Bimstec Member Countries.
In this context, the Thai prime minister welcomed the establishment of the Bimstec Permanent Secretariat in Dhaka.
Both sides viewed it as a positive development in providing institutional support to the issues of common regional interest.
The two leaders highlighted the importance of the Bimstec FTA and urged for an early completion of the negotiations on the Agreement on Trade in Goods.
The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation in the United Nations and in other international forums on issues of mutual interest.
The prime minister of Thailand and the prime minister of Bangladesh will carefully consider each other’s candidatures for non-permanent seats in the UN Security Council and each other’s candidatures for the membership of the UN Human Rights Council.
The two prime ministers thanked each other for supporting each other’s candidatures to the UPU Postal Operations Council (POC) and the Council of Administration (CA) for 2013 - 2016.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra extended an invitation to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to visit Thailand at a mutually convenient time.
The prime minister accepted the invitation. It was agreed that the dates of the visit would be finalised through diplomatic channels.