BLITZ BUREAU
New Delhi Asserting that longstanding goals such as capacity building and economic cooperation have acquired a new urgency, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on July 12 called for deepening and broadening of activities between the Bay of Bengal countries. “Global and regional developments also make it imperative that we find more solutions amongst ourselves,” he said in his opening remarks at the two-day 2nd BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers’ Retreat which began in the National Capital.
“For India, BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) represents the interaction of the ‘Neighbourhood First’ outlook, the ‘Act East’ policy and the SAGAR vision. Each of these endeavours is being purposed with a specific focus on the Bay of Bengal by the collaborative potential that has long remained under-realised. Our challenge is to change that for the better and to do so rapidly,” he stated.
Jaishankaris hosting his counterparts for the significant meet which brings together seven countries of South and South East Asia for multifaceted cooperation. “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 Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.
