Foreign relations of Bangladesh

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Bangladesh
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Bangladesh pursues a moderate foreign policy that places heavy reliance on multinational diplomacy, especially at the United Nations.

1 Participation in Multilateral Organizations
2 Bilateral Relations With Other Nations
- 2.1 India
- 2.2 Pakistan
3 Disputes - international
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] Participation in Multilateral Organizations

[edit] Commonwealth

Bangladesh joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1972 and has actively participated in the Heads of Government conferences that occur bi-annually.

[edit] United Nations

Bangladesh was admitted to the United Nations in 1974 and was elected to a Security Council term in 1978 and again for a 2000-2002 term. Foreign Minister Choudhury served as president of the 41st UN General Assembly in 1986.

In recent years, Bangladesh has played a significant role in international peacekeeping activities. Several thousand Bangladeshi military personnel are deployed overseas on peacekeeping operations. Under UN auspices, Bangladeshi troops have served or are serving in Somalia, Rwanda, Mozambique, Kuwait, Bosnia, and Haiti, and units are currently serving in Kuwait and East Timor. Bangladesh responded quickly to President Clinton's 1994 request for troops and police for the multinational force for Haiti and provided the largest non-U.S. contingent.

[edit] Non Alligned Movement

Bangladesh was slated to become the next chairman of NAM at the summit scheduled for Dhaka 2001, however it was later decided to host the summit at an alternative venue.

[edit] Organization of the Islamic Conference

Following the recognition of Bangladesh by Pakistan in 1974, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman led a Bangladeshi delegation to the OIC conference in Lahore upon which Bangladesh was admitted as a member.

In 1977, the President Ziaur Rahman amended the Constitution of Bangladesh, including a clause stating that "the state shall endeavour to consolidate, preserve and strengthen fraternal relations among Muslim countries based on Islamic solidarity". Since then, an explicit goal of Bangladeshi foreign policy has been to seek close relations with other Islamic states.

In 1983, Bangladesh hosted the foreign ministers meeting of the [[Organization of the Islamic Conference]] (OIC).

[edit] South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

The government also pursued the expansion of cooperation among the nations of South Asia, bringing the process--an initiative of former President Ziaur Rahman--through its earliest, most tentative stages to the formal inauguration of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at a summit gathering of South Asian leaders in Dhaka in December 1985. Bangladesh has served in the chairmanship of SAARC and has participated in a wide range of ongoing SAARC regional activities

[edit] Other

Bangladesh is currently chairman of the Group of 8 Developing Countries. The government has participated in numerous international conferences, especially those dealing with population, food, development, and women's issues. In 1982-83, Bangladesh played a constructive role as chairman of the "Group of 77," an informal association encompassing most of the world's developing nations. It has taken a leading role in the "Group of 48" developing countries.Bangladesh also participate in these international organization: ARF, AsDB, BIMSTEC,CP,FAO,IAEA, IBRD,ICAO,ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM,IDA,IDB,IFAD,IFC,IFRCS,IHO,ILO,IMF,IMO,Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, SACEP, UNCTADUNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,WTO,OPCW.

[edit] Bilateral Relations With Other Nations

Bangladesh is bordered on the west, north, and east by a 2,400-kilometer land frontier with India, and on the southeast by a land and water frontier (193 kilometers) with Burma.

[edit] India

India is Bangladesh's most important neighbor and was the second country to recognize (first being the Kingdom of Bhutan) the independence of Bangladesh in 1971. Geographic, cultural, historic, and commercial ties are strong, and both countries recognize the importance of good relations. During and immediately after Bangladesh's struggle for independence from Pakistan in 1971, India assisted refugees from East Pakistan, intervened militarily to help bring about the independence of Bangladesh, and furnished relief and reconstruction aid.

Indo-Bangladesh relations are often strained, and many Bangladeshis feel India likes to play "big brother" to smaller neighbors, including Bangladesh. Bilateral relations warmed in 1996, due to a softer Indian foreign policy and the new Awami League Government. A 30-year water-sharing agreement for the Ganges River was signed in December 1996, after an earlier bilateral water-sharing agreement for the Ganges River lapsed in 1988. Both nations also have cooperated on the issue of flood warning and preparedness. The Bangladesh Government and tribal insurgents signed a peace accord in December 1997, which allowed for the return of tribal refugees who had fled into India, beginning in 1986, to escape violence caused by an insurgency in their homeland in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The implementation of all parts of this agreement have stalled, and the Bangladesh Army maintains a very strong presence in the area. The army is increasingly concerned about a growing problem of cultivation of illegal drugs.

Relations between India and Bangladesh have become particularly strained in recent years as India has accused Bangladesh of harboring separatists fighting for independence in its north-Eastern region bordering Bangladesh, as well as harboroing other religious extremists. The Bangladesh government has consistently denied these accusations.

[edit] Pakistan

Bangladesh enjoys warm relations with Pakistan, despite the strained early days of their relationship, including the brutal genocide committed by the Pakistan army against the people of Bangladesh during the 1971 Liberation War.

Landmarks in their reconciliation are:

An August 1973 agreement between Bangladesh and Pakistan on the repatriation of numerous individuals, including 90,000 Pakistani prisoners of war captured by India in Bangladesh as a result of the 1971 conflict;
A February 1974 accord by Bangladesh and Pakistan on mutual diplomatic recognition, followed more than 2 years later by establishment of formal mutal diplomatic relations on January 18th 1976;
The organization by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) of an airlift that moved almost 250,000 Bengalis from Pakistan to Bangladesh, and non-Bengalis from Bangladesh to Pakistan; and
Exchanges of high-level visits, including a visit by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to Bangladesh in 1989 and visits by Prime Minister Zia to Pakistan in 1992 and in 1995.

Still to be resolved are the division of assets from the pre-1971 period and the status of more than 250,000 non-Bengali Muslims (known as "Biharis") remaining in Bangladesh but claiming identity as Pakistani citizens and seeking resettlement in Pakistan. There are also many advocates in Bangladesh for a formal apology from Pakistan for its role in the 1971 conflict, and acknowledgement of genocide and crimes against humanity (such as rape and systematic slaughter of intellectuals and students).

[edit] Disputes - international

A portion of the boundary with India is indefinite, and there is a dispute with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island.

[edit] References

This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
This article contains material from the US Department of State's Background Notes which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.