PM off to Italy to attend ASEM summit

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. File Photo

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka for the Italian city of Milan this morning on a four-day visit to attend the 10th summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).
A VVIP flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying the Prime Minister and her entourage departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 10:05am.
Ministers, advisers, civil and military high officials saw her off at the airport.
The flight will land at Milan Malpensa International Airport at 3:50 pm (Italy time). Then she will drove to Carlton Hotel Baglioni where the Prime Minister will be staying during her tour.
The ASEM Summit, to be chaired by the President of the European Council and hosted by the Government of Italy, will be held in Milan on October 16-17.
The theme of the 10th ASEM Summit is ‘Responsible Partnership for Growth and Security’ that reflects the enlarging scope of the EU-Asia relationship.
On Thursday, before attending the Summit, the Prime Minister will have a meeting with her Greece counterpart Antinios C. Samaras at Bangladesh Meeting Room of Milano Congressi, where the Summit will be held.
Then she will attend the official welcome and handshake by MatteoRenzi, President of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of Italy, Jose Manuel Barrosso, President of the European Commission and Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council.
After that, Sheikh Hasina will attend the opening ceremony of the ASEM 10. She will deliver her speech at the second plenary session 'Europe - Asia partnership in addressing global matters in an inter-connected world'.
At the same venue, she will have meetings with her Italian, Swedish and Dutch counterparts Mattero Renzi, Stefan Lofven and Mark Rutte.
After the series of meetings, she will attend the official gala dinner hosted by Italian President Giorgio Napolitano at Sala delle Cariatidi.
On Friday, Sheikh Hasina will attend the retreat session on enhancing dialogue and cooperation between Asia and Europe and Future Direction and closing ceremony of the ASEM 10.
In the evening, Bangladeshi expatriates living in Italy will give a community reception to the Prime Minister at NH Hotel Mllanofiori, Assago.
On October 18, the Prime Minister and her entourage will leave Milan by a VVIP flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines at 10 pm (Italy time) for home and reach Dhaka at 11:50pm.