Foreign Minister says will discuss Rohingya repatriation issue with India during his visit

Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud on Tuesday said that the Rohingya repatriation issue will be discussed with India during his first bilateral visit to New Delhi apart from discussion on overall bilateral issues.

He mentioned that Myanmar is a neighbouring country for both Bangladesh and India.

Talking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the minister said Bangladesh has been seeking India‍‍`s support regarding the Rohingya repatriation. "So, overall this issue will be discussed," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina last September where the Rohingya issue was discussed.

With regard to the regional situation, Modi expressed appreciation of the burden shouldered by Bangladesh in hosting over a million persons displaced from the Rakhine State in Myanmar, and conveyed India‍‍`s constructive and positive approach to support solutions towards safe and sustainable repatriation of the refugees.

Since the Foreign Minister will have a meeting with India‍‍`s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, the current security situation in Myanmar is likely to be discussed in the context of regional issues, said a diplomatic source.

The foreign minister is going to India tonight (Tuesday) and is scheduled to hold a meeting with his Indian counterpart Dr S Jaishanka on Wednesday.

The foreign minister is likely to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will have a separate meeting with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal during his stay in New Delhi.

He will also pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi at the iconic Rajghat.

He is likely to attend a seminar, too.

Asked about BNP‍‍`s comment that the Myanmar BGP members are entering Bangladesh and the conflicts are spilling into Bangladesh territory due to the government‍‍`s “lenient foreign policy,” Hasan said BNP leaders were "speaking the language of the insane."

"BNP thought that the foreign countries will not welcome the new government of Bangladesh after the polls, but now that all are welcoming and expressing their interest to work with us, BNP is speaking the language of the insane," he said.

Though the Foreign Minister will go to New Delhi directly, he will return to Dhaka via Kolkata on Friday night (February 9), a senior official told UNB.

In Kolkata, he will attend a "meet the press" event and a reception, to be hosted by the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission.
Earlier, Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Seheli Sabrin, said issues of mutual interest including trade, connectivity and energy cooperation, people-to-people contacts and regional cooperation will be discussed between the two sides at the bilateral meeting to further strengthen Bangladesh-India relations.

Asked whether the Teesta water-sharing issue will be discussed in the meeting, the foreign ministry spokesperson said they expect the issue would be discussed.