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Monday, Jan 15, 2007
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BIMSTEC summit put off

Diplomatic Correspondent

Bangladesh conveys inability to participate

NEW DELHI: The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit, scheduled to be held here on February 8, has been put off, official sources told this correspondent on Saturday.

According to the sources, India, the host country, decided to put off the heads of government meeting after Bangladesh conveyed its inability to participate.

Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan are the other members of the seven-nation grouping.

Clearly, the political uncertainty in Bangladesh has taken a toll on the summit. It remains to be seen whether the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit, set for the first week of April here, can be held on schedule or not.

Interestingly, it is been some time since India hosted a major regional or international conference at the level of heads of government — BIMSTEC was supposed to be the first of its kind in some years.

In August last, BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers agreed that negotiations to finalise a free trade agreement should be concluded before the next summit (then scheduled for February 8).

A joint statement issued by the grouping after a daylong meeting in New Delhi stressed the importance of improving transport links among member states.

It stated that the Asian Development Bank should "work closely" with BIMSTEC nations. The Ministers welcomed the decision to establish a BIMSTEC Energy Centre in India.

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