‘Bangladesh not a party to China-India conflict’

Some foreign policy and security analysts do not see any risk of creating irritants in Bangladesh’s relations with India, for Dhaka’s closer economic cooperation with Beijing.

They conform to the prime minister’s views that India should not worry about Bangladesh’s relations with China and said Bangladesh is not a party to China-India inter-state conflict.

A former diplomat, two professors of International Relations and a security analyst made similar observation when Prothom Alo sought their comment on prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s overtures to India.

Dhaka’s growing cooperation with Beijing is meant only for Bangladesh’s development, Hasina told a visiting Indian media delegation on Tuesday.

“Bangladesh’s cooperation with China is mainly on the economic front. China is a development partner of Bangladesh,” said Imtiaz Ahmed, a professor of International Relations at Dhaka University.

Former ambassador Humayun Kabir thinks such relations do not appreciate conflict, rather than bringing positive impact on the relation between the two players.

“We must focus on our own interest instead of looking at the issues from the points of views of India and China,” he insisted.

Amena  Mohsin, another DU professor  of International Relations, mentioned that there are steps that involve China in this region. “But no foreign policy can be centring on only one country; it involves many nations,” she said.

The analyst, however, pointed out that through her statement, the prime minister apparently tried to give an assurance to India.

M Sakhawat Hossain, a former brigadier general, termed both China and India as Bangladesh's partners in its development programmes.

Acknowledging India’s concern about China in the region, he pointed out that China is making its presence in the subcontinent stronger. He cited China’s growing cooperation with Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal.

Despite conflicting relations between the two countries, Shakhawat believes, China’s economic cooperation with Bangladesh has no geopolitical implications.

 “We have no border with China. The prime minister might have tried to assure India of that reality,” he added.

Human Kabir said, “We need economic development and we want peaceful atmosphere in this region.”

Professor Imtiaz observed that Bangladesh is not a party to the “kind of rivalry” that China and India are engaged in.

“Bangladesh’s growing relations with China do not in any way suggest that Bangladesh is going against India,” he said.