Bangladesh rules out Premier Rahman's BRICS participation in India

A Bangladesh Foreign Ministry official on Thursday ruled out Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's participation in the BRICS summit in India, citing the address in the invitation as the cause.

India is hosting the BRICS leaders' summit over the weekend, which will be attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping as well as Russian President Vladimir Putin, among others.

“How shall he (prime minister) go? Has anyone from the Bangladesh government been formally invited? Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was invited to BRICS in his capacity as the BIMSTEC chair; he was not invited as the prime minister,” said State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kobir.

There is “no scope” for the government to join the summit. However, a bilateral visit by the head of government to India remains a possibility, he said while talking to reporters in the capital Dhaka.

“Visits (bilateral) will take place when the environment is conducive and mutual respect is maintained; there is no need to rush matters,” he added.

India earlier said Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited Rahman in his capacity as the chairperson of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), and there has been a bilateral invitation since Bangladesh’s February election.

BIMSTEC is a platform consisting of seven member countries, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Relations between the two South Asian neighbors slid to a low point since the ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who currently lives in India.