Bangladesh has decided to send a senior secretary of the home ministry to the first-ever meeting of BIMSTEC Home Ministers in New Delhi on Tuesday (13 October), instead of Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed.
Home ministry Senior Secretary Manzur Morshed Chowdhury will lead the Bangladesh delegation at the meeting, scheduled for 13 October, a diplomatic source told UNB today (11 October).
The inaugural meeting of Home Ministers of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) will review regional security cooperation and explore ways to expand it under the regional grouping, officials said.
The meeting will bring together ministers and representatives from the seven BIMSTEC member states – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Bhutan’s home minister, Myanmar’s union minister for home affairs, Nepal’s home minister, Sri Lanka’s minister for Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs, and Thailand’s deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council are expected to attend, an official told UNB.
The meeting comes as BIMSTEC seeks to strengthen regional cooperation in law enforcement, intelligence sharing and security.
At the fourth BIMSTEC Summit, held in Kathmandu on 30-31 August 2018, the leaders expressed their determination to strengthen cooperation and coordination among law enforcement, intelligence and security agencies.
They also decided to hold meetings of BIMSTEC home ministers while continuing meetings of BIMSTEC National Security Chiefs to promote cooperation and coordination in combating terrorism and transnational crime.
The BIMSTEC home ministers’ meeting will be supported by a Senior Officials’ Meeting of Home and Interior Ministries.
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