Dhaka-Islamabad talks resume after 15-year pause

NN Online:

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on August 23 for an official visit aimed at enhancing bilateral relations with Bangladesh.

He will hold a bilateral meeting with Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on August 24, alongside other engagements, Adviser Hossain confirmed Monday.

Dar’s earlier visit, planned for April 27–28, was postponed due to rising tensions between Pakistan and India following a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir.

The new dates were finalised through mutual consultations between the two governments.

In recent diplomatic interactions, Bangladesh has raised long-standing issues with Pakistan—most notably, the demand for a formal apology for the 1971 Liberation War atrocities and pending financial claims.

“These issues must be resolved to build a strong foundation for bilateral ties,” then-Foreign Secretary Md Jashim Uddin said in April.

After a 15-year diplomatic pause, the two sides have resumed discussions and expressed willingness to engage on historical and current matters.

Most recently, Dar and Hossain met on the sidelines of the UN conference on the Two-State Solution in New York, where they jointly condemned Israeli aggression and reaffirmed solidarity with Palestine.

This marked their fourth meeting since October 2024. Both sides reaffirmed commitments to deepen cooperation in politics, trade, culture, and people-to-people exchange, and agreed to pursue more high-level visits in the coming months.