Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Chief Adviser of the interim government in Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus sat next to each other during an official dinner hosted by Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra in Bangkok on Thursday.
A screengrab shared by the official X handle of the Chief Adviser of the Government of Bangladesh shows both leaders sitting next to each other at Hotel Shangri-La on the banks of the Chao Phraya River.
In the photo, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli was sitting on left to PM Modi while Muhammad Yunus sat on his right during the official dinner for the visiting Heads of State and Heads of Government attending the BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok.
PM Modi is also likely to meet Yunus on Friday on the sidelines of a sixth summit of the leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
Screen grab of BIMSTEC Summit official dinner on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/XHTBV1cNqV
— Chief Adviser of the Government of Bangladesh (@ChiefAdviserGoB) April 3, 2025
นายกรัฐมนตรี เป็นเจ้าภาพเลี้ยงอาหารค่ำเพื่อเป็นเกียรติแก่ผู้นำประเทศที่เข้าร่วมการประชุมความริเริ่มแห่งอ่าวเบงกอลสำหรับความร่วมมือหลากหลายสาขาทางวิชาการและเศรษฐกิจ Bay of Bengal Initiative Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)
3 เมษายน 2568 pic.twitter.com/gG6OX4cDUZ
— Ing Shin (@ingshin) April 3, 2025
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India-Bangladesh Ties
The ties between India and Bangladesh have seen a slump amid Delhi’s concerns over the violence targeting Hindus and a rise of hardline Islamist forces in the neighbouring country since the interim government stepped in following the ouster of the then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024.
Yunus visited China last week where he urged Beijing to extend its economic influence to his country. He also controversially remarked that India’s northeastern states being landlocked could prove to be an opportunity.
He said the seven states of the North East in India are a landlocked region and have no way to reach out to the ocean. He branded Bangladesh as the “only guardian of the ocean” in the region, adding this could be a huge opportunity and could be an extension of the Chinese economy.
Later Bangladesh officials issued clarification on Yunus’ statement as it did not go well with India.
