Home ›› 25 Apr 2023 ›› Governance
Bangladesh and Japan are likely to sign eight memorandums of cooperation or agreements, including one on defence co-operation without purchase, as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will hold a summit meeting with her Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio in Tokyo on April 26.
The prime minister is scheduled to leave Dhaka for Tokyo at 7:45 am on April 25 by a special flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, and will land in Tokyo at 5 pm (Japan time) the same day.
Eight MoCs or deals are likely to be signed between the two countries in the sectors of agriculture, metro rail, industrial upgradation, ship recycling, customs matters, intellectual property, defence cooperation, ICT and cyber security coopera-tion etc. in presence of the two leaders after the formal bilateral summit meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in Japan.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Seheli Sabrin were present at the media briefing today held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“We have a very good relationship with Japan. They are investing here and helping in many ways including in infrastructure development. Our relationship has been solid. We hope the PM’s visit will be fruitful and successful. We are looking for-ward to this visit. They are also looking forward,” Momen told reporters at the media briefing.
Responding to a question on defence cooperation with Japan, Momen said that Bangladesh is eying cooperation in blue economy and illegal fishing is a major issue; Japan would like to help Bangladesh in protection in this regard.
State Minister Shahriar Alam said the proposed memorandum on defence cooperation between the governments of Bang-ladesh and Japan aim at promoting and strengthening cooperation in the fields of defence dialogue, exchange of visits, education, training, courses, seminars, workshops, technology transfer and any other agreed activities.
The prime minister will have a courtesy meeting with the Emperor of Japan on April 26 and a guard of honour will be given to the PM there.
The formalities of the summit meeting will conclude with a dinner hosted at the residence of the Prime Minister of Japan in honour of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
PM Hasina will be on an official visit to Japan from April 25 to 28, at the invitation of her Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio.
Both Dhaka and Tokyo hope that this visit will further strengthen the friendly relations between the two countries.
This will be the sixth visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to Japan. Earlier, the PM visited Japan in 1997, 2010, 2014, 2016 and 2019.
Youngest daughter of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Sheikh Rehana; Foreign Minister Momen; Agriculture Minister; Prime Minister’s Private Industry and Investment Adviser; State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahri-ar Alam; State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources; State Minister for Information and Communication Technology along with the relevant high level government officials will accompany the prime minister during her visit to Japan.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will attend the Bangladesh Investment Conference jointly organized by Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) and JETRO as the chief guest at a hotel in Tokyo on April 27.
On April 27, the prime minister will award “Friends of Liberation War Honour” to four Japanese citizens for their special contribution to the Liberation War of Bangladesh.
On the evening of April 27, the PM will attend a civic reception organized by Bangladeshi citizens living in Japan.
Also, an interview of the prime minister will be telecast on NHK, Japan’s state TV channel.
“This visit will create an opportunity to discuss more seriously the issue of the promotion of the relationship between the two countries into a strategic partnership,” Foreign Minister Momen said.
From Tokyo, the prime minister will visit the US and UK to attend a number of programmes.
