DHAKA, Bangladesh: Bangladesh’s Foreign Affairs Advisor Touhid Hossain has said the country could join a regional grouping with Pakistan that does not include India, signalling a potential geopolitical shift in South Asia.
“It is possible for us [Bangladesh] strategically … [but] it is not possible for Nepal or Bhutan to form a grouping with Pakistan excluding India,” reported state-owned news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), quoting Hossain while responding to a question.
The Bangladeshi advisor’s remarks came after a statement by Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar at the recent ‘Islamabad Conclave’, where he had said a trilateral initiative involving Bangladesh, China and Pakistan had begun and may expand to include countries within and beyond the region.
Relations between Pakistan and Bangladesh are improving following the ouster of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in the aftermath of student-led protests last year, and she has since been residing in India.
Relations between India and Bangladesh’s new government have been frosty since then, allowing Islamabad and Dhaka to slowly rebuild ties.
Last year, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Bangladesh’s Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus on the sidelines of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in September.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also met Bangladesh’s Chief Advisor in August 2025 during an official visit aiming to strengthen regional and bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
The two countries have also agreed in principle to grant visa-free entry to holders of diplomatic and official passports.
Expanding on Deputy PM Dar’s remarks at “Islamabad Conclave”, where he said that a trilateral initiative involving Pakistan, Bangladesh and China had commenced, Hossain quoted the Pakistani Foreign Minister saying that “at some point this could see some progress”.
In August, Pakistan’s Deputy PM Dar visited Bangladesh for the first time in 13 years.
