By Amarendra Yadav

Dhaka, Dec. 24: Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen has said that his country’s relationship with Nepal was always very sweet.
Foreign Minister Dr. Momen said so while talking to The Rising Nepal at the closing ceremony of Visit Nepal Bangladesh Programme-2019 hosted by the Foreign Ministry of Bangladesh at State Guest House in Dhaka.
Nepal was the 7th country to extend recognition to Bangladesh by establishing diplomatic relations with the latter as early as in 1972 soon after its creation as an independent country.
“We have a solid relationship with Nepal in multilateral areas. Many people of Bangladesh visit Nepal frequently. Many Nepali students, especially medical ones, have been studying in our universities and colleges” Foreign Minister Momen said Saturday.
He further said, “Bangladesh is always a supporter of Nepal on regional and international platforms. Whenever Nepal asks India and other neighbouring countries for transit, we advocate for that.”
On the future of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), the Foreign Minister said that the prosperity of SAARC was being obstructed by the enmity between India and Pakistan.
“You know why SAARC is not prospering. One main reason is the enmity between India and Pakistan,” he said.
The two countries are the members of regional organisations like SAARC, The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal (BBBIN).
“But BBIN and BIMSTEC should do better,” he added.
Similarly, Salman F Rahman, MP and private sector development affairs advisor to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said that his country would buy 5,000 megawatts electricity from Nepal.
Responding to a question asked by this daily, Rahman said, “We are initiating to import 500MW electricity from Nepal at first. In the course of time, we have plans to buy as much as 5,000MW power from Nepal in near future.”
He underlined an urgent need for extending transmission lines through the Indian soil to import electricity from Nepal.
Addressing the function, both the Bangladeshi leaders urged the investors across the world to invest in their country, stating that Bangladesh was not only one of the world’s most investment-friendly countries but also the world’s one of the few fastest growing economies.