On Tuesday, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen co-chaired the sixth meeting of the India-Bangladesh Joint Consultative Commission (JCC). The JCC is a mechanism established by the two countries to overlook the progress made on bilateral projects. As a consequence of the JCC, the two sides have agreed to conduct a “virtual Prime Minister-level Summit in December 2020” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh’s Liberation War. Though Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had planned to visit Dhaka earlier in March, the trip was indefinitely postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
During Tuesday’s meeting, the leaders discussed the contentious issue of killings along the India-Bangladesh border. Momen expressed his concern regarding the increasing number of civilian deaths caused by Indian security forces at the countries’ shared frontier. A statement released by the Bangladeshi foreign ministry said, “The two ministers stressed on the need for strengthening the effective implementation of the Coordinated Border Management Plan. The Bangladesh side highlighted that the entire nation is deeply concerned at the rise in killings of Bangladesh nationals by Indian border forces.” Further, it stated, “ [The] Indian side agreed that the loss of civilian lives at the border is a matter of concern. Both sides urged the concerned border forces to enhance coordinated measures to bring down border incidents to zero.”
Another controversial matter that featured in the discussions was the resolution of the Teesta water-sharing issue. During the meeting, Bangladesh highlighted the importance of an “early resolution” of the case and regretted the failure of the efforts taken by the two countries so far. The two sides consequently agreed to convene the long-overdue meeting of the Joint Rivers Commission. India and Bangladesh have been discussing the Teesta water-sharing agreement for over a decade, but there has been no progress in the discussions since the deal was called off following staunch opposition from West Bengal’s Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee. Meanwhile, China has stepped in and offered a $1 billion loan for “the management of the Teesta River.” Bangladesh’s Water Development Board and the Power Construction Corporation of China also signed a non-binding agreement for this project in 2016.
The two sides also discussed Bangladesh’s Rohingya refugee crisis. Bangladesh called upon India, who has recently been elected as a non-permanent member to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), to gather international support for a long-lasting solution to the situation. A joint statement released by the two nations after their talks acknowledged the need to secure the “safe, sustainable, and speedy” return of the refugees, who are currently housed in Bangladesh, back to Myanmar.
India, Bangladesh Convene for 6th Joint Consultative Commission
During the meeting, the two sides discussed several controversial subjects, such as the issue of border killings and the Teesta water-sharing agreement.
October 1, 2020
SOURCE: DHAKA TRIBUNE