PICTURE SPEAK

PLAINSPEAK: Manmohan raises India’s security concerns during talks with Khaleda

Delhi, on its part, ensured the visit was high on atmospherics and bonhomie, with the correct dash of protocol thrown in. While the Bangladesh premier rolled out her gift diplomacy with Jamdani silk saris for Sonia and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s wife Gursharan Kaur, India struck a diplomatic note and hosted her in the same suite as US President George W. Bush.

The visit was important: it was a first by the Bangladesh premier eight months before the curtains come down on her second tenure and allowed the two sides to engage in candid parleys. The outcome, however, was conspicuously short of substance, despite a joint statement claiming the two countries would “further consolidate their ties”.

Last year, bilateral relations had hit an all-time low in the backdrop of a virtual war of words between the two nations. Heated exchanges ensued after India sought postponement of the saarc summit scheduled in Dhaka early in 2005 following a series of bomb attacks that put a question mark over the security situation. Finally, the two leaders met later in November that year on the sidelines of the summit and Manmohan invited Khaleda to India for bilateral talks.

So, this visit was aimed at clearing the air and thawing the frost between the neighbours. However, even as Khaleda and Manmohan engaged in plainspeak, they also voiced their respective concerns.

While Delhi realises its eastern neighbour is the bigger cause of concern than any other country along its borders, Manmohan was inclined to give Dhaka another chance rather than strike a strident note. Attempting to quell any misgivings Dhaka may harbour about Delhi’s policy vis-a-vis Bangladesh, he told Khaleda, “A strong and prosperous Bangladesh is in the interest of India, South Asia and the Asian region as a whole.”

Different Strokes

TERROR: Delhi expressed concerns over Bangladesh being used as a launch pad for terror attacks on India. Also presented a dossier on terrorist groups and their links with Bangladesh. TRADE: Khaleda complained Delhi is not doing enough to correct trade imbalance and provide it transit facility. India asks Dhaka to provide a list of products for duty-free import. AGREEMENTS: The two sides inked a revised pact to expand bilateral trade. Differences grounded two other agreements on avoidance of double taxation and investment protection. Way forward: Agree to strengthen existing mechanisms of bilateral talks. Will step up high-level consultations to increase trust. Home secretaries to meet soon on security issues.

Earlier, the Bangladesh prime minister said she had commenced on the trip with an open mind and would discuss everything. Differences, nevertheless, cropped up during the talks at Hyderabad House when Delhi upped the ante on terror links from Bangladesh. For India, which shares a 4,096-km border with Bangladesh, the undeterred spread of religious extremism and terrorism in that nation has been a niggling problem. The topic, therefore, was high on Delhi’s agenda, with Khaleda striving to assure the Indian leadership that she would not allow Bangladesh’s soil to be used for anti-India activities.

During the talks, sources said Manmohan expressed his appreciation of Dhaka’s swift move to apprehend terrorist leaders like Bangla Bhai, but insisted that much more needed to be done. “We need sustained action,” he told Khaleda, stressing it was imperative Dhaka addressed Delhi’s security concerns on Bangladesh becoming a launching pad for terrorist activities in India.

While he did not haul Dhaka over the coals, a firm reminder was issued that it had a long way to go to address India’s concerns on terrorism. In a dossier prepared by the Home Ministry and shared with Khaleda and her delegation, Indian interlocutors told the Bangladesh premier that spiralling extremism and religious fundamentalism in her country was impeding relationship between the two nations. The host nation also made specific mention of the accused in the Delhi and Varanasi bomb blasts having Bangladeshi links and how anti-India groups, such as Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (isi), were using Bangladesh to foment terror in India.

Terrorist camps operating in Bangladesh was another contentious issue discussed. Delhi had earlier supplied Dhaka with a list of 172 terrorist camps, together with documentary evidence of how terrorists were being trained in camps in that country to foment violence in India.

On her part, Khaleda complained that Delhi was not doing enough to correct the trade imbalance and provide it a transit facility. The Bangladesh prime minister contended that being the larger of the two countries, India should allow unilateral concessions by permitting duty-free access to exports from Bangladesh and, thereby, correct the trade imbalance with Dhaka. “The ever-growing trade gap between India and Bangladesh is a matter of considerable concern for us... because such a situation is hardly sustainable,” Khaleda said.

Insiders said while Manmohan expressed willingness to allow a level playing field, he asked Bangladesh to provide a specific list of products for India to consider with an open mind. Delhi also cited Tata’s proposed $2.5-billion (approximately Rs 11,098 crore) project as proof of its efforts to address the trade imbalance. Dhaka, however, countered it wanted certain clarifications on the project.

Differences, meanwhile, derailed agreements on the Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty and Investment Protection Treaty, both of which fell through after Dhaka presented some last-minute amendments to the drafts ahead of the talks. The Indo-Bangla cocktail was also spiked with a dash of energy diplomacy, with Delhi asking Khaleda to remove the roadblocks hindering the Myanmar-Bangladesh-India gas pipeline, which Dhaka has put on hold citing political considerations. It would be for the benefit of both the countries, Manmohan assured his counterpart. Khaleda, however, was non-committal. Clearly, Dhaka still sees the pipeline as a political tool than an economic boon. While differences clogged key issues, there was some incremental progress. A train link between Sealdah in West Bengal to Joydebpur in Bangladesh received the go-ahead.

Delhi also said it would explore avenues of trade concessions at the meeting of the Joint Economic Commission and assured Dhaka a conference of the home secretaries would be convened soon to address security concerns. The talks also touched on the vexed river water issue. Dhaka voiced its concern over interlinking of rivers, to which Delhi replied it had no immediate plans to implement the move. Hiccups also surfaced during negotiations on the joint statement, with Dhaka resisting use of the term “terror”. Finally, the two sides settled for a compromise and agreed to working closer on “security, trade and sharing of water”.

While the Khaleda visit may not have achieved a major breakthrough, it could serve the limited purpose of keeping the relationship on an auto-pilot. General elections are due in Bangladesh in 2007, and ties with India play a crucial role in its domestic political scenario. Perhaps keeping this in mind, Khaleda had indicated she wanted to achieve something tangible, preferably in the form of trade concessions, which could be showcased as her achievement on the foreign affairs front. While Delhi has provided her elbow room on trade by adopting a flexible stance, it will have to keep up the pressure on Dhaka to curb terror. Otherwise, India may have to later contend with a nursery of terror on its eastern flank.

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