Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh Chief Advisor Mohammad Yunus can meet BIMSTEC (BENGAL Initiative for Multi-Sectorial Technical and Economic Cooperation) in Thailand’s capital Bangkok today. However, so far, there is no official announcement from both the countries for such a meeting, so far, there is no official announcement from both countries for the union. If it is, it will be the first time after the fall of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government in August last year after taking charge of the interim government in Bangladesh.
The two leaders attended the dinner of the BRICS Summit on Thursday (April 3, 2025), where PM Modi was seated on one side of Mohammad Yunus and Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on the other side. This possible meeting will be important during the sixth BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok, as there has been tension between Dhaka and Delhi for months over the attacks on minorities in Bangladesh and the frequent living in India.
PM Modi will speak in BIMSTEC’s plainry session
During his visit to Beijing this week, the comments of Mohammad Yunus’s northeast region of India and the inclusion of Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh as ‘expansion of Chinese economy’ have also led to doubt about the current policy of the interim government of Bangladesh in Delhi. PM Modi will speak in the Planery Session (Main Session) of the BIMSTEC Summit and will hold bilateral talks with other heads of state. He will meet Sri Lankan Prime Minister Harini Amsuriya and Bhutan Prime Minister Shering Tobge before his visit to Sri Lanka on 5-6 April.
Also read: Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Thailand, Indian community welcomed warmly
Prime Minister Modi can also meet Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. This will be a possible meeting between the governments of the two countries amidst the ongoing tension between the governments of the two countries over the delay in inviting Oli to India. Let us know that KP Sharma Oli first visited Beijing after not getting invitation from Delhi after coming to power in 2024. According to sources, a meeting is also proposed between PM Modi and the Prime Minister of the Military rule (Junta) of Myanmar and Commander-in-Chief General Min Aung Having. This will be the first high -level meeting of the Indian Prime Minister with the military rule there after the coup in Myanmar in 2021.
India’s northeast region at the center of BIMSTEC: PM
While leaving for a two -day visit to Thailand for the BIMSTEC summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that ‘BIMSTEC has emerged as an important platform to promote regional development, contact and economic progress in the Bay region of Bengal, which has the North Eastern region of India at the center. I am eager to interact creatively to further strengthen our cooperation, keeping in mind the leaders of BIMSTEC countries and keeping in mind the interests of my people.
Also read: PM Modi and Bangladesh Chief Advisor Yunus seen together in Thailand … can meet today
Speaking at the BIMSTEC ministerial conference, on Thursday (April 3, 2025), External Affairs Minister S.K. Jaishankar said that when the construction of the highway between Indo-Myanmar-Thailand is completed, it will prove to be a game-changer for the region. The proposal of this highway was first placed in 2002 and its construction began in 2012, but it was mainly delayed due to violence and instability in Myanmar. BIMSTEC, formed in 1997, includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. It is seen as a bridge between South Asian SAARC and South-East Asian ASEAN groups.