PM Modi meets Bangladesh PM Hasina

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held extensive talks with his visiting Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Saturday to further strengthen cooperation in diverse areas including trade and connectivity reported news agency PTIThe Bangladesh prime minister began her twoday visit to India on FridayThis is the first official bilateral state visit by a foreign leader to India since the Lok Sabha elections and the establishment of the new governemnetPM narendramodi extended a warm welcome to PM Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh at Hyderabad House ahead of their bilateral discussions External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on XHe added The two leaders have met each other ten times since 2019 making unprecedented transformations in the relationshipIn the morning Hasina reportedly visited Rajghat and paid rich tributes to Mahatma GandhiAccording to the news agency report the visiting leader was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan ahead of the talksOfficials said the focus of the ModiHasina talks would be to impart a new momentum to the bilateral ties including in areas of trade connectivity and energy reported PTIThe overall strategic ties between India and Bangladesh have been on an upswing in the last few yearsUnder its Neighbourhood First policy India views Bangladesh as its important partner The cooperation reportedly between the two nations extends to areas of security trade commerce energy connectivity science and technology defence and maritime affairs among othersAs per the agency report Bangladesh is Indias largest development partner with nearly onefourth of New Delhis commitment under the Line of Credit has been made to that countryThe neighbouring country is reportedly Indias biggest trade partner in South Asia and India is the second biggest trade partner of Bangladesh in AsiaReportedly India is Bangladeshs largest export destination in Asia with approximately USD 2 billion of Bangladeshi exports recorded to India in 202223According to the PTI report there is active cooperation between various agencies of both countries to cooperate on police matters and anticorruption activities and to combat illicit drug trafficking fake currency and human trafficking among othersThe two countries reportedly share 40967 km of border the longest land boundary that India shares with any of its neighboursHasina was among the seven top leaders from Indias neighbourhood and the Indian Ocean region who attended the swearingin ceremony of Prime Minister Modi and the Union Council of Ministers on June 9 reported the PTI