Dhaka, Moscow seek closer parliamentary coop
Bangladesh and Russia have agreed to explore deeper cooperation in parliamentary affairs, digital transformation and legislative capacity building following a meeting between Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman and Konstantin Kosachev, Deputy Speaker of the Senate of the Russian Federation, in Moscow on Tuesday.
During the meeting, Kosachev congratulated Bangladesh on holding what he described as landmark general elections in February and on the formation of the new government led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
The two sides discussed ways to strengthen legislative cooperation through parliamentary diplomacy, professional exchanges and knowledge-sharing initiatives. Particular emphasis was placed on digital transformation in parliamentary institutions and the growing role of technology in legislative processes.
Dr Rahman highlighted Bangladesh’s ongoing efforts to modernise its parliamentary system through e-Parliament initiatives, digital legislative services and citizen engagement platforms. He also outlined the country’s broader digital transformation agenda.
Both sides agreed to explore opportunities for cooperation between parliamentary institutions in Bangladesh and Russia, including collaboration in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and legislative research.
The discussions also covered the expansion of professional exchange programmes, visits by parliamentary delegations and capacity-building initiatives aimed at enhancing institutional expertise and effectiveness. Recognising parliamentary diplomacy as an important complement to traditional state-to-state diplomacy, the two leaders expressed interest in working together at international parliamentary forums to promote mutual understanding, engagement and multilateral cooperation.
They also discussed the establishment of parliamentary friendship groups in their respective legislatures as a means of strengthening bilateral ties and fostering regular exchanges between lawmakers.
During the meeting, Dr Rahman invited a Russian parliamentary delegation to visit Bangladesh.
The Foreign Minister is currently on a three-day official visit to Russia at the invitation of his Russian counterpart. Humaiun Kobir, Adviser on Foreign Affairs to the Prime Minister, was also present at the meeting. During his visit, Dr Khalilur Rahman had a detailed exchange of views on a wide range of bilateral and international issues.
On bilateral trade and finance, both sides noted that the volume of bilateral trade may be further increased. Discussions spanned new payment channels and mechanisms to expand commercial cooperation, involving major state-linked financial entities.
Dr Rahman sought Russia’s support in concluding a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Commission.
On cooperation in multilateral front, Bangladeshi side expressed interest in becoming an official member of BRICS and SCO.
In addition, two sides agreed to cooperate in advanced technologies, specially AI applications in healthcare and agriculture.
Dr Rahman proposed that a delegation should visit Bangladesh to discuss collaboration in AI, with Russian side reacting positively to the idea.
Apart from it, Bangladesh Foreign Minister met Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev. They reviewed the progress of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant and discussed future Russia-Bangladesh cooperation in nuclear field.
