Dhaka, Jan 1 (.) Bangladesh interim government Chief Advisor Mohammed Yunus, who has been actively courting Pakistan, again pushed for revival of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), saying that the spirit of the bloc remains alive and must be revived at any cost.
He noted the presence of high-level dignitaries from SAARC member states at former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s funeral which he said demonstrates continued regional goodwill.
Yunus said the fact that leaders from across the South Asian region came together to pay tribute to Khaleda Zia and showed respect to her memory clearly demonstrated that the spirit of SAARC still exists.
“The SAARC spirit is alive and well. We must preserve the spirit of SAARC,” he said.
According to Chief Advisor’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam, Yunus conveyed the same message to the visiting foreign dignitaries during his meeting with them at the state guesthouse Jamuna on Wednesday and Thursday.
Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Nepal’s Foreign Minister Bala Nanda Sharma called on Yunus on Wednesday, while Maldives Minister of Higher Education Ali Haidar Ahmed and Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath met Yunus on Thursday afternoon.
During these interactions, Yunus conveyed the same message to all that SAARC had to be revived anyhow, Shafiqul Alam said.
External Affairs Minister of India S Jaishankar and Bhutan Foreign Minister DN Dhungyel had also attended the funeral of Khaleda Zia on Wednesday in Dhaka, besides the four foreign dignitaries mentioned above.
The Pakistan, Nepal, Maldives and Sri Lankan dignitaries, during their meeting with Yunus, expressed appreciation for the arrangements and said they were overwhelmed by the massive public turnout at the funeral.
SAARC was established through the signing of its charter in Dhaka on December 8, 1985, and currently includes eight member states; Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Its secretariat was set up in Kathmandu in January 1987.
Chief Advisor’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam shared the remarks at a media briefing at Foreign Service Academy on Thursday. Deputy Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad Majumder and Senior Assistant Press Secretary Foyez Ahammad were also present.
Yunus had also called for the bloc’s revival in his address to the UNGA in September.
Over the past year, he has discussed the issue with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in Dhaka, and also with US ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor.
India has suspended the SAARC process over Pakistan’s backing of cross-border terrorism. India has been prioritising the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation), which excludes Pakistan.
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