Regional Security Summit Kicks Off: Bangladesh Minister Absent
The Bay of Bengal regional bloc, BIMSTEC, will hold its first home ministers’ meeting. This historic event will happen in New Delhi on Tuesday, October 13. However, Bangladesh Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed will not attend. Senior Secretary Monzur Morshed Chowdhury will lead Bangladesh’s team instead.
BIMSTEC Secretary General Indra Mani Pandey confirmed this news from Delhi. He said home ministers from six member countries will participate. Only Bangladesh’s home minister will be absent. Before the main meeting, senior officials will meet for discussions on October 12.
Government officials, who did not want to be named, shared a reason for this decision. They said it relates to current tensions between Bangladesh and India. Earlier in September, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman also missed a BRICS summit meeting in Delhi. India had invited him as BIMSTEC chair.
BIMSTEC began its journey in 1997. It aims to build cooperation between South and South-East Asian nations. Its seven members are Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal, and Bhutan. The group’s main office is in Dhaka. Bangladesh took over as BIMSTEC chairman in April 2025.
The home minister’s absence was also noted in a diplomatic letter. The Foreign Ministry sent this letter to the BIMSTEC Secretariat on October 4. It listed a four-member Bangladesh delegation. The home minister’s name was not on this list.
Indian Home Minister Amit Shah will lead the ministerial meeting. India’s Home Secretary, Govind Mohan, will chair the senior officials’ meeting. Other participating home ministers include Lungten Dorji from Bhutan and General Ko Ko Oo from Myanmar. Sudan Gurung from Nepal and Chandana Aberathne from Sri Lanka will also attend. Thailand’s Deputy Minister of Interior, Songsak Thongsri, will be present.
A main goal of the meeting is to strengthen cooperation against terrorism. It will also focus on stopping cross-border crimes. Discussions will cover preventing human trafficking and drug smuggling. Other topics include money laundering and terror financing. Members will seek to improve coordination among their law enforcement agencies.
The idea for a BIMSTEC home ministers’ meeting was made eight years ago. This happened during the bloc’s summit in Kathmandu in 2018. Leaders then agreed to hold regular meetings. But this will be the first such meeting to take place.
