A highly placed source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said that the Deputy Chief of the US Mission in Nepal called on Saarc Secretary General Chenkyab Dorji at the Saarc Secretariat in Kathmandu on March 26 and handed over a letter of the US government seeking observer status of the regional forum.

"The [Saarc] secretary general has informed the matter to Bangladesh, current chair of the regional association," the official added.

Earlier, South Korea had formally asked for becoming an observer of the association.

Ambassador of the Republic of South Korea to Bangladesh Seong Ung handed over the request letter to Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan on March 8.

The foreign ministry official said as the current chair of Saarc, Bangladesh is happy to note that a number of countries have expressed their interest to be associated with the forum, especially following the signing of the Safta (South Asia Free Trade Area) agreement.

"Dhaka will advise the Saarc Secretariat to process the requests made by the USA and South Korea," he added.

Official sources said the terms and conditions for new membership and observer status would be finalised at the first meeting of the Saarc Standing Committee, comprised of the foreign secretaries of the member states, on April 10-12 in Dhaka.

The terms and conditions will then be approved at the meet of Saarc Ministers' Council due to take place in Dhaka in July this year. The council comprises the foreign ministers of the member countries.

During the 13th Saarc summit in Dhaka in November last year, the Saarc leaders granted new membership to Afghanistan and observer status to China and Japan.