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Khaleda may put past behind

B. Muralidhar Reddy

Bangladesh Prime Minister to hold talks with Aziz on a whole range of ties

ISLAMABAD: Bangladesh's Prime Minister Khaleda Zia arrived here on Sunday on a three-day official visit for interaction with her Pakistani interlocutors on a wide range of subjects.

Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and his wife Rukhsana Shaukat Aziz along with Minister-in-Waiting Nelofar Bakhtiar received her at the Chaklala Air Base.

Ms. Khaleda Zia would meet President Pervez Musharraf and hold talks with Mr. Aziz covering a complete range of bilateral relations.

It is the first high level bilateral visit from Bangladesh in 13 years.

Pakistan has traditionally been more comfortable in dealing with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) led by Ms. Zia as compared to the Awami League led by Sheikh Hasina. Since it would be the Bangladeshi Premier's first visit after taking over as the SAARC chairperson last November, SAARC-related issues would also come up for discussions.

Despite the long gap in the visit at the highest level, it would be significant only in political terms. Four Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and one agreement in diverse areas are expected to be signed.

The four MoUs will be on agriculture cooperation, promotion of tourism, cooperation between two export promotion bureaus and on standardisation of weights and measures. A bilateral agreement on visa abolition of diplomatic and official passports is also on the cards.

Bangladesh, part of Pakistan till 1971, has had an uneasy relationship with Islamabad. Memories of excesses by the Pakistan army prior to the birth of Bangladesh have refused to fade away and the precise cause for the division of Pakistan has continued to be a sore point between the two countries.

During his visit in 2002, Gen. Musharraf sought to end the sorry chapter of excesses by Pakistan army in the erstwhile East Pakistan by not only expressing regrets but also making a strong plea to forget the past and join hands for a new bond between the people's of the two countries.

The regret, first ever by any Pakistani military regime, did help to some extent heal the wounds.

However, the fate of three lakh stranded Biharis in Bangladesh has been a source of tension between Islamabad and Dhaka.

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