BD positively considers Makkah Defence Pact, says Humaiun

Bangladesh is positively considering the Makkah Defence Agreement, with any decision guided by national interests and the scope for using the country's peacekeeping expertise to promote regional peace and stability, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir said on Saturday.

“We are having positive discussions on the Makkah Defence Agreement. We are viewing it positively,” he said at a seminar organised jointly by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and North South University's Centre for Migration Studies at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.

Speaking to journalists after the event, Kobir said peace and stability in the Middle East and the Muslim world would be central to Bangladesh's consideration of the agreement.

“If it falls within the national interests of Bangladesh and we feel that our peacekeeping expertise can add value in serving Muslim nations and keeping a stable, peaceful Middle East, then there is every scope to take a positive decision,” he said.

The state minister also said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had accepted an invitation from Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince to visit the Kingdom. The Crown Prince had also expressed interest in visiting Bangladesh, he added.

At the seminar, titled “From Workforce to Strategic Partnership: Reimagining Bangladesh-KSA Relations”, Kobir called for expanding bilateral ties beyond labour migration and remittances to investment, technology, infrastructure, ports, logistics, agriculture, healthcare and other sectors.