Pakistan, Bangladesh resume FO-level talks after 15-year hiatus

Pakistan and Bangladesh have resumed high-level diplomatic consultations for the first time in 15 years as senior officials from both sides met in Dhaka on Thursday to revive bilateral engagement and address regional and international matters of mutual interest.

The Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) were held at the State Guest House Padma and led by Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch and her Bangladeshi counterpart Md Jashim Uddin.

The meeting marks the first formal FOC between the two countries since 2010, signalling renewed efforts to rebuild trust and cooperation.

According to officials, discussions focused on a range of issues including trade, investment, tourism, cultural exchanges, and the situation of forcibly displaced Rohingyas.

Both sides also reviewed progress in visa facilitation and direct shipping services, and expressed optimism about future collaboration in regional forums.

Amna Baloch, who assumed her role in September 2024, is on a two-day visit to Dhaka. She is expected to meet Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and Foreign Adviser Touhid Hossain, and will also attend an interaction with think tanks and the Pakistani diaspora later in the day.

The consultations are part of Islamabad’s wider strategy to strengthen ties with Dhaka following a thaw in relations after the Awami League-led government’s exit in August 2024.

Since then, Pakistan and Bangladesh have exchanged trade delegations and engaged in multiple diplomatic meetings on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and D-8 Summit.

Bangladesh has since eased visa restrictions for Pakistani nationals and launched direct shipping links. Pakistan, in turn, is looking to boost exports and facilitate cultural programmes to deepen people-to-people contact.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled to visit Dhaka in the final week of April. His visit would be the first by a Pakistani foreign minister to Bangladesh since 2012.