DHAKA, Bangladesh (Diya TV) — Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Thursday called for revitalizing relations with Pakistan to expand trade and business opportunities, strengthen regional cooperation, and deepen people-to-people engagement.
Yunus made the remarks during a courtesy meeting with Pakistani Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka. The meeting marked the first bilateral foreign secretary-level consultations between the two countries in 15 years, according to an official statement from the Chief Adviser’s Office.
“There are certain hurdles, but we must overcome them and move forward,” Yunus told Baloch, emphasizing that both nations have much to gain from renewed engagement.
Yunus, who has long advocated for closer ties within South Asia, reiterated Bangladesh’s commitment to fostering stronger regional integration under the framework of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
“For a long time, we kept missing each other as our relationship was frozen. Now is the time to thaw that ice,” Yunus said, referencing past diplomatic stagnation.
The Chief Adviser also proposed expanding cultural and youth exchange programs to rebuild trust and foster stronger people-to-people connections. He highlighted previous bilateral interactions with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif—first on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2024, and again during the D-8 Summit in Cairo in December—as pivotal moments in renewing momentum.
Baloch echoed Yunus’s sentiments, saying, “We have huge intra-regional markets in our own right, and we should use them. We can’t miss the bus every time.”
She emphasized the importance of regular business-to-business (B2B) engagement and called for more frequent exchanges between the private sectors of both countries. “We need structured and ongoing dialogue to tap into our shared economic potential,” she said.
Baloch pointed to the January 2025 visit by a delegation from Pakistan’s apex business body, the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), which signed a memorandum of understanding with the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), as a key step in that direction.
According to The Daily Star, Baloch expressed hope that the upcoming visit of Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar later this month would further boost diplomatic and economic ties between Dhaka and Islamabad.
Both sides acknowledged the need to address lingering issues while building a forward-looking relationship based on mutual benefit, shared history, and geographic proximity.
Yunus reaffirmed that Bangladesh and Pakistan would continue to collaborate at various multilateral and regional platforms, including SAARC, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation.
Also present during the meeting were Senior Secretary for SDG Affairs Lamiya Morshed and Pakistan High Commissioner to Bangladesh Syed Ahmed Maroof.
