Bangladesh-India secretary-level talks on Dec 9 or 10: Touhid

Foreign adviser Md Touhid Hosain on Wednesday said the scheduled Foreign Secretary-level Foreign Office Consultation (FOC) between Bangladesh and India will take place in Dhaka on 9 or 10 December.

"It is very clear that we want a good relationship (with India)," he told reporters at the foreign ministry on Wednesday afternoon.

However, the foreign adviser emphasized that relations between Bangladesh and India must be built on a reciprocal basis. "Both sides need to want that and should work for it," he added.

Touhid mentioned that while the FOC is scheduled for 10 December, it might be held a day earlier, on 9 December.

During the high-level consultation, Bangladesh foreign secretary Md Jashim Uddin and Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri will lead their respective delegations.

The discussions are expected to cover a range of bilateral issues, including the potential extradition of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, currently in India, and visa-related matters.

Ousted Sheikh Hasina, who fled Dhaka on 5 August and has been residing in India since then, is facing trial in Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal for alleged involvement in mass killings during the July-August uprising.

At the foreign ministry's weekly briefing on 21 November, Director General of the Public Diplomacy Wing Toufique Hasan confirmed that an inter-ministerial meeting had already been held to coordinate preparations for the upcoming talks.