India's foreign secretary Harsh Shringla meets PM Sheikh Hasina as China eyes Teesta project
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla meets Bangladesh's PM
India had dispatched foreign secretary Harsh Shringla to Dhaka which had raised eyebrows.According to official accounts,Shringla's visit was meant to strengthen relationship between India and Bangladesh. However, there is the spectre of China over the engagement.
China reportedly wants to fund the construction of a dam on the Teesta river. After meeting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, India's foreign secretary held talks with his counterpart in Beijing.
Bangladesh newspapers featured just one story on their front page - the visit by India’s foreign secretary to Dhaka and his interaction with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
Sheikh Hasina hasn’t met any other foreign dignitary in the last four months, neither has foreign secretary Harsh Shringla travelled outside India during the pandemic. So, the sudden meeting was closely watched both in India and Bangladesh.
Sources told WION on Tuesday that the foreign secretary delivered a message from Prime Minister Modi to Sheikh Hasina. India wanted to see how the two sides could take the relationship forward. On Wednesday, Shringla met with his Bangladeshi counterpart as they discussed ways to deepen cooperation in a post-coronavirus world including the possibility to open up an air bubble and priority access to the Oxford vaccine for Bangladesh.
New Delhi’s sudden effort to deepen ties with Dhaka was necessary. Shringla's sudden trip comes in the backdrop of a report which claims that China is ready to invest almost $1 billion in the Teesta river project which is a long-standing sticking point between India and Bangladesh.
Dhaka is demanding a greater share of the Teesta waters, specifically during December and May when the water supply to the fields of northern Bangladesh tends to dry up.
India and Bangladesh have failed to reach an agreement so far. The engagement this week signals a push as reports sayIndia and Bangladesh have discussed a two-year roadmap for bilateral ties but both sides made no mention of the Teesta project or any other controversial issues.
The threat of the Dragon may have been contained in Bangladesh for now but it is far from over.