Two senior officials, of India and US, arrive in Dhaka Tuesday evening

Two senior officials, of India and the US, will be arriving in Dhaka today, Tuesday. They will be reaching Bangladesh coincidentally on the same day.

Indian foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra is due to arrive Tuesday evening on a flight from the Nepalese capital Kathmandu. The US state department counselor Derek Chollet is scheduled to reach around the same time from Washington.

Schedules for Vinay Kwatra and Derek Chollet to meet the prime minister Sheikh Hasina tomorrow, Wednesday, have been finalised. They will also join several official meetings during their visit.

Vinay Kwatra will arrive in Dhaka Tuesday evening by a special flight of the India air force. On his two-day visit, he will hold a meeting tomorrow, Wednesday, with foreign secretary Masud Bin Momen.

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, hosting the G-20 summit in September, has extended an invitation to prime minister Sheikh Hasina to join the event. Prime minister Hasina is scheduled to attend the event.

During the Bangladesh-India foreign secretary talks to be held in Dhaka on Wednesday, prime minister Sheikh Hasina's proposed visit to New Delhi will be discussed among other issues of bilateral interest.

According to foreign ministry official, several high level meetings will take place between the two countries this year, as preparation for prime minister Sheikh Hasina's India trip. The two foreign secretaries may discuss details of these meetings too on Wednesday.

During his stay in Dhaka, Vinay Kwatra is scheduled to pay courtesy calls on prime minister Sheikh Hasina and foreign minister Abdul Momen.

Speaking to the media in this regard, foreign secretary Masud Bin Momen said, this is Vinay Kwatra's first Dhaka visit as foreign secretary. He will lead the Indian side during the important foreign secretary level meeting. Various aspects of relations between the two countries will be discussed at the meeting. Several high level meetings between the two countries have been held over the past one year. Decisions taken at these meetings will be reviewed.

Masud Bin Momen said they will try to cover all issues of bilateral relations within the short time. The 18th G-20 summit will be held on 9 and 10 September in Delhi this year. Host India has only invited Bangladesh among South Asian countries to attend the summit. Prime minister Sheikh Hasina's attendance of the summit will also be discussed.

In the meantime, there has been much talk at home and abroad about purchasing coal at high prices from India's Adani Group. When asked if the matter will be raised during talks with Vinay Kwatra, the foreign secretary said that the foreign ministry is not directly involved with the purchase of coal at high prices from the Adani Group. The matter will be discussed if the relevant ministry provides any input.

Diplomatic sources say, prime minister Sheikh Hasina's Delhi trip in September is more or less confirmed. Preparations are on for the commercial inauguration of the Bangladesh-India Friendship Pipeline during the visit. Diesel will be supplied by pipeline to Bangladesh from the Numaligarh oil refinery in Assam. During the trip, progress on the renovation of the Tongi-Akhaura railway line dual gauge, supply of railway rolling stock, and upgradation of railway service by means of IT, will come under review.

According to the diplomatic sources, plans have been taken up to hold 15 to 20 meetings of the Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) at various levels, including at a ministerial level, prior to the prime minister's India visit this year. India is not eager to hold a ministerial level meeting of JRC due to uncertainty regarding signing the Teesta water sharing deal. Even so, Bangladesh hopes for a ministerial level meeting to be held after over a decade. Various other meetings will also be held between the two countries, including between the home ministries, shipping ministries, commerce ministries, environment ministries and the border security forces.

Diplomatic sources say that the US secretary of state Antony Blinken's special advisor Derek Chollet will arrive in Dhaka today, Tuesday.

Resolving the Rohingya issue will feature prominently during his trip.

An advance team of USAID arrived in Dhaka prior to Derek Chollet's visit. The team visited the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar on Sunday. They returned to Dhaka after inspecting the conditions on ground.

Derek Chollet is to join foreign secretary Masud Bin Momen in a breakfast meeting tomorrow, Wednesday. He will later pay courtesy calls on prime minister Sheikh Hasina and foreign minister AK Abdul Momen.

Outside of these official level meetings, Derek Chollet will also exchange views with members of the media.