Dhaka seeks Jakarta’s backing to be Asean’s dialogue partner

Bangladesh has sought Indonesia’s support for sectoral dialogue partnership with Asean.Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina reiterated her government’s keen interest to intensify trade, economic and regional peace and security partnerships with Asean countries and sought support of Indonesia to that end.Indonesian President Joko Widodo welcomed Bangladesh’s request for institutionalising relations with Asean and encouraged Bangladesh for a more active engagement with Asean, according to a joint statement issued on the state visit of the Indonesian president.President Widodo appreciated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for sheltering over 1mn displaced persons from Myanmar’s Rakhine State. He reiterated his country’s support to safe, dignified return of the displaced people to Rakhine.President Widodo visited camps in Cox’s Bazar yesterday.Prime Minister Hasina appreciated Indonesia’s supportive role, including the humanitarian assistance for the displaced people from Myanmar sheltered in Bangladesh.Both the leaders stressed the need for enhancing air connectivity to promote people-to-people contact, tourism and trade. They agreed to work to further widen cooperation in the areas of agriculture, information technology, defence and tourism.Recognising the threats arising from terrorism, violent extremism and radicalisation on any religious or societal pretext, the leaders agreed to work together to counter all such challenges in both countries and beyond.President Widodo appreciated the warm hospitality and courtesies extended to him and his delegation by the government and the people of Bangladesh during the visit.He invited the president and the prime minister of Bangladesh to visit Indonesia at a mutually convenient time. Widodo paid homage at the National Mausoleum in Savar, Bangladesh in memory of the martyrs of the 1971 War of Liberation yesterday.Following this, the president paid tributes to the memory of Father of the Nation of Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Bangabandhu Memorial Museum.Both leaders recalled the association between Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Founding Father of Indonesia President Soekarno, particularly in the NAM.During his visit, President Widodo held meeting with President Md Abdul Hamid.President Widodo praised socio-economic development of Bangladesh under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Hasina.He expressed confidence that under the leadership of Hasina, Bangladesh would graduate to a middle-income country by 2021.Hasina appreciated President Widodo’s pro-people leadership and various initiatives for achieving welfare-oriented economic development in Indonesia.She noted with appreciation Indonesia’s constructive role in Asean and the OIC.The two leaders reiterated that Bangladesh-Indonesia relationship is rooted in the shared historic, religious, cultural and linguistic heritage of the two nations.President Widodo and Prime Minister Hasina welcomed the signing of the memorandum of understanding on Foreign Office Consultations between the two countries which will pave the way for holding periodic consultations between the foreign ministries of the two countries.The two leaders also agreed to hold the third meeting of the joint commission in 2018 in Dhaka.Both the leaders also expressed satisfaction over the discussion on the commercial deal for sales-purchase between Petrobangla of Bangladesh and Peftamina of Indonesia for importing LNG. The leaders agreed to further widen and deepen cooperation in the energy sector.Both the leaders welcomed the joint statement by the minister of trade of Indonesia and the minister of commerce of Bangladesh to commence the process of bilateral trade negotiation.The leaders recognised the need for collaboration between the private sectors of the two countries for availing of the opportunities of investment in both the countries.