19 February 2019

The first ever Foreign Office consultations between Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates were held on 19 February 2019 at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abu Dhabi, UAE. The Foreign Secretary Mr. Md. Shahidul Haque led the Bangladesh delegation while the UAE delegation was led by His Excellency Khalifa Shaheen Al-Marar, Assistant Foreign Minister for Political Affairs of the UAE. The meeting was held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere at the sidelines of the bilateral visit of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to the UAE.

Both delegations took stock of the whole gamut of bilateral relations between the two countries and exchanged views on issues of mutual concern in regional and international arena. They expressed satisfaction for the excellent understanding and relations at the highest political level between the two countries, which was taken to a new height by the ongoing visit of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to the UAE.  Both sides underscored working together at official levels to materialize the cooperation activities through meaningful engagements.

Increased economic cooperation between the two countries through expansion of trade and investment and cooperation in the manpower sector had been highlighted during the discussions. UAE side hailed the signing of the MOUs towards increased investment in Bangladesh and  informed that relevant agencies of their government is working towards streamlining and opening the sector for Bangladeshi nationals..

The meeting was followed by official lunch offered by the UAE Assistant Minister in honour of Bangladesh delegation. It was decided that the next consultations would be held in Dhaka.