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External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will host his counterparts from the BIMSTEC member countries at a two-day retreat beginning On July 11 in the national capital.
The retreat will present an opportunity for the foreign ministers to discuss avenues to deepen cooperation across various sectors including in the fields of security, connectivity and trade, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.
Myanmar’s Deputy Prime Minister U Than Swe has already arrived in Delhi to attend the retreat.
India has been making concerted efforts to make BIMSTEC a vibrant forum for regional cooperation as initiatives under SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) were not moving forward for a variety of reasons. Besides India, the BIMSTEC comprises Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan.
“The retreat will present an opportunity for the foreign ministers of the BIMSTEC countries to discuss, in an informal setting, avenues to broaden and deepen cooperation across various sectors including in the fields of security, connectivity, trade and investment, people to people contacts etc, in the Bay of Bengal region and littoral,” the MEA said.
