Dhaka wants India to give Nepal, Bhutan transit

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said Bangladesh always requests India to give Nepal and Bhutan transit for boosting bilateral and regional trade and business.

"If such transit facilities are given, neighbouring countries can use Mongla Port, which will expedite the regional development," she said.

The PM said this during a meeting with newly appointed Ambassador of Japan to Bangladesh Tamotsu Shinotsuka when the envoy paid a call on her at her office yesterday.

She told the envoy that the present government has planned to modernise the Mongla seaport and Japan can help Bangladesh in this regard.

During the meeting, the envoy expressed his country's willingness to cooperate with Bangladesh in modernising the civil service system of the country.

Briefing newsmen after the meeting, PM's Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad said the premier assured the new Japanese envoy of providing necessary cooperation so he could properly discharge his diplomatic duties in Dhaka.

As various matters of development were discussed, the PM sought more cooperation from Japan in expediting national development.

Making a strong promise to make Bangladesh self-sufficient in food again, Hasina sought Japanese assistance for setting up more godowns and silos in the country for preserving extra harvests of food-grains.

She also called for more Japanese investment in Bangladesh.

Mentioning Japanese assistance in setting up the Rupsha Bridge, the PM requested the Japanese government to give more assistance in building the much-expected Padma Bridge.

She said her government has a plan to launch capital and maintenance dredging in the major rivers of the country to bring back the navigability of the rivers.

The mega-scheme also has been planned as a way to face the challenges of the world climate change.

On parliamentary democracy, the ambassador said the international election observers, including from Japan, said the people of Bangladesh successfully elected their democratic government in a free, fair, neutral and acceptable election on December 29 last year.

Hasina thanked Japan for its cooperation in holding the December 29 polls in a free and fair manner.

The ambassador highly praised the speech of Bangladesh prime minister in the 64th session of United Nations General Assembly in New York.

The envoy said Hasina in her speech successfully pointed out "all burning issues of the world", including the challenges of climate change and food security, and guided the international community in ensuring a better world.

Ambassador Tamotsu Shinotsuka invited the PM to visit Japan, saying that the people of Japan and its government are eagerly waiting to welcome the Bangladesh PM to their country.

Hasina accepted the invitation and invited her newly elected Japanese counterpart to visit Bangladesh.

Shinotsuka said "Japan has a friendly relation with Bangladesh since it attained independence in 1971 under the leadership of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman."

He said the existing bilateral relations would be strengthened further in the days to come and Japan would continue to assist Bangladesh in the process of attaining the cherished sustainable development and prosperity.

PM's Office Secretary Mollah Waheeduzzman was present.