It is learned that efforts are underway by leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) countries in New Delhi for the Republic Day celebrations next year.
Apart from India, the sub-regional group of seven countries includes Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan. BIMSTEC leaders attended the PM Narendra ModiHe is taking oath at the start of his second term in May 2019, but has since seen a change of leadership in some of these countries.
sources told Indian Express that South Block is in close contact with the leaders of these countries and their offices to confirm their availability. The feelers have been sent through “appropriate channels” – and the guest list for the Republic Day will be announced once confirmation is received, sources said.
As per protocol, the invitation letter is issued only after the availability of the foreign leader is confirmed.
The invitation to be the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade has a very symbolic significance from the point of view of the Government of India. Every year the choice of the Chief Guest of New Delhi is decided by a number of factors – strategic and diplomatic concerns, commercial interests and international geopolitics.
India is expecting Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa or his brother, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Bhutan Prime Minister Lotay Tshering, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha General Min Aung Huling, Chairman of the State Administration Council of Thailand and Myanmar, will participate in the Republic Day celebrations.
This will be the first time for the Indian leadership to engage directly with General Min Aung Huling, who seized power in February this year. In 2019, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Myanmar had separate leaders. Bangladesh had sent President Mohamed Abdul Hameed for Modi’s swearing-in.
However, sources cautioned that COVID-19 The pandemic is not over yet, an element of uncertainty remains, and plans are likely to be canceled at the last minute.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had to cancel his visit to India for the Republic Day celebrations this year due to the pandemic raging in his country. There was no chief guest in India for Republic Day in January 2021.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was the chief guest in 2020, and in 2019, following an invitation from the then United States President Donald Trump, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was invited as the chief guest.
ten leaders from ASEAN Countries participated in Republic Day in 2018, and in previous years, the chief guests were Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (2017), French President Francois Hollande (2016) and the US President. Barack Obama (2015).
New Delhi’s association with BIMSTEC came from the ashes of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). In October 2016, after the terrorist attack in Uri the previous month, India made a renewed push to rejuvenate the group, which then existed for nearly two decades, but was largely ignored. Along with the BRICS summit in Goa, Modi hosted an outreach summit with BIMSTEC leaders.
That year, some BIMSTEC countries supported New Delhi’s call for a boycott of the SAARC summit to be held in Islamabad in November 2016. The summit was postponed, and India claimed victory in isolating Pakistan, accusing that country of carrying out the Uri attack.
BIMSTEC offered a regional forum at which five of the eight SAARC member states could come together to discuss sub-regional cooperation. India had long felt that SAARC’s vast potential was being under-utilised, and opportunities were being lost due to a lack of response and/or a disruptive approach on the part of Pakistan.
India’s search for an alternative to SAARC was made clear at the 2014 SAARC summit in Kathmandu, where Modi said opportunities were presented “through SAARC or outside it” and “between all of us or some of us”. must be felt through. This was an important signal for Pakistan and other SAARC countries.
Two years after the BRICS-BIMSTEC Outreach Summit and the BIMSTEC leaders retreat, the 4th BIMSTEC Summit was held in Kathmandu in September 2018. It was only the group’s fourth summit in 21 years, but the results were considered broad – covering ground from the blue economy to the fight against terrorism.
The Bay of Bengal is the largest bay in the world. One-fifth (22%) of the world’s population lives in its surrounding seven countries, which have a total GDP of close to $2.7 trillion.
Seven BIMSTEC countries were able to maintain an average annual rate of economic growth between 3.4% and 7.5% from 2012 to 2016. The Bay of Bengal contains vast untapped natural resources, and a quarter of the world’s trade crosses the bay every year.
The original BIMSTEC grouping formed in 1997 was Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, and later included Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan. Two BIMSTEC nations, Thailand and Myanmar, are also part of ASEAN, and the Bay of Bengal grouping forms a bridge between South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The Bay of Bengal, a funnel for the Straits of Malacca, has emerged as a major theater for an increasingly assertive China, eager to ensure that its access to the Indian Ocean remains unhindered. Beijing has launched a comprehensive campaign for infrastructure funding and development in South and Southeast Asia through the Belt and Road Initiative in almost all BIMSTEC countries except India and Bhutan.
As China increases submarine movements and ship visits in the Indian Ocean, it is important for India to strengthen engagement with BIMSTEC countries as part of its broader Indo-Pacific strategy.
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