Bangladesh seeks China's help to repatriate Rohingya refugees

On Sunday, Bangladesh sought cooperation from China to repatriate Rohingya refugees to Myanmar, during a visit by Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who promised better trade ties, investment and support for infrastructure development in the south Asian nation.

China had used its influence in Myanmar to broker a November 2017 agreement to repatriate about 700,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled persecution in Myanmar in August that year. Despite attempts to send them back, the refugees refused, fearing danger in Myanmar, which was exacerbated by the military takeover last year.

Wang arrived in Dhaka on Saturday, and met with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen. They discussed bilateral and global issues before his departure on Sunday, said Shahriar Alam, Bangladesh’s Junior Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Bangladesh has strong relations with China, a major trade partner mostly for raw materials. However, maintaining close ties with Beijing is challenging for Bangladesh, as it also balances diplomatic and trade relationships with both India and the United States, China's main rivals.

More than 500 Chinese companies are active in Bangladesh. China is involved in all of the country’s major infrastructure projects, such as seaports, a river tunnel and highways, and helped build its largest bridge over the River Padma, at a cost of $3.6 billion.

Amid recent tensions between China and Taiwan, Bangladesh issued a statement reiterating its support for the “one-China” policy. After winning elections in 2008, Hasina’s administration closed the Taiwanese business representative office in Dhaka, in response to a request from China, and since then, China has increased its engagement in Bangladesh.

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Bangladesh’s garment industry, which brings in more than 80 per cent of foreign currency from exports, is heavily dependent on China for raw materials.

On Sunday, Wang had told Hasina during a courtesy call that his country considered Bangladesh a “strategic development partner”, and would continue to support it, reported Ihsanul Karim, the presidential Press Secretary.

The United News of Bangladesh, a news agency, reported that Wang had also promised to stand beside Bangladesh “on all issues at international forums".

The Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, a state-run news agency, reported that Hasina raised the global tensions caused by the Russia-Ukraine war and Western sanctions against Moscow, saying:

"People [across the world] are enduring difficult times… South Asia, Southeast Asia and China can work together for economic progress.”

Alam said that Wang agreed to expand trade benefits by raising to 98 per cent duty-free access from current 97 per cent of Bangladeshi products and services to Chinese markets.

“It’s a good news for Bangladesh as we have a thriving economy based on exports,” Alam said.

"Now they have offered another 1 per cent from September 1,” he said, adding that the new tax advantage was likely to include garments and other products that had previously faced some barriers. He said Bangladesh would soon get a list from China about the products and services that would get duty-free access.

The Junior Minister said China pledged to work continuously to resolve the Rohingya crisis, and quoted Wang as saying that Myanmar's internal challenges were troubling other countries.

”Our foreign minister strongly reiterated that Chinese cooperation is needed. China has progressed on resolving the Rohingya issue and we need the situation to come to an end,” Alam said.

On Sunday, Bangladesh and China signed/renewed four agreements and memorandums of understanding on disaster management, infrastructure and cultural exchanges.

Analyst Munshi Faiz Ahmad, who served as Bangladesh ambassador in Beijing, said Wang's visit was very significant for both countries.

“To resolve the Rohingya crisis Bangladesh needs support from China. This visit will help strengthen the bilateral relations," Ahmad told The Associated Press.

“To us, China is very important. We also need to maintain good relations with both India and the United States as they are also very important development partners of Bangladesh. There is nothing to be afraid of because of Bangladesh’s close ties with China,” he said.

• Asia