Pakistan and Bangladesh discuss expanding trade and defense ties

Pakistani Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman General Sahir Shamshad Mirza met with Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Saturday, as the two countries signal a rapprochement following the change of government in Dhaka last year, when former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign amid youth-led protests.

During their meeting, the officials discussed increasing significance of bilateral trade, investment, and defense cooperation, according to a social media post by the Yunus administration. Mirza conveyed Pakistan’s interest in enhancing cooperation across multiple sectors and highlighted the significant potential for growth in trade and connectivity between the two nations, according to a press release issued by Pakistan’s armed forces.

“Our two countries will support each other,” Mirza told Yunus, adding that a two-way shipping route between Karachi and Chittagong had already begun operating, while a Dhaka-Karachi air route is expected to open within months.

In August, Pakistan and Bangladesh signed six cooperation agreements that are expected to deepen the bilateral engagement, which included visa-free travel for diplomats and government officials.

Mirza’s visit, the highest-ranking by a Pakistani official to Dhaka in years, follows the ousting of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose government was widely seen as pro-India, in August 2024.

Meanwhile, a gift from Yunus to Mirza has stirred a row in India after it was found to allegedly feature a map showing parts of northeast India as Bangladeshi territory. India has not yet issued an official response, though it lodged a strong protest with Dhaka last year when a similar map was circulated online.