The two-day 5th Annual Defence Dialogue (ADD) between Bangladesh and India began in the capital Dhaka on Monday.
According to the official websites of Indian High Commission in Bangladesh, the ADD was co-chaired by Shri Giridhar Aramane, Defence Secretary of India and Lt Gen Waker-uz-Zaman, Principal Staff Officer (PSO) of the Armed Forces Division of Bangladesh.
The two sides reviewed progress in their on-going defence cooperation in wide-ranging areas, including various exchange visits, military exercises, cooperation in humanitarian assistance and disaster reduction, defence industry cooperation, as well as various capacity building and training programmes. The two sides also explored contours of future cooperation and agreed to work towards achieving greater synergy and partnership between the two armed forces.
According to the Defence Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Bangladesh and India on 8 April in 2017, a decision was taken to process the common issues of the three forces through the ADD, said an ISPR press release.
In view of the Defence MoU, ADD is being held in India and Bangladesh every year with the aim of improving the relationship between the armed forces of Bangladesh and India. So far, a total of four ADDs have been held between the two countries. Last year the 4th ADD was held in India. In continuation of this, the 5th ADD started in Dhaka on Monday under the supervision of the Armed Forces Department.
In this dialogue, mutual military cooperation between the two countries, bilateral military issues, military industry, disaster management and liberation war will be discussed.
Lt Gen Waqar-uz-Zaman, Principal Staff Officer, Department of Armed Forces, on behalf of Bangladesh, and Shri Giridhar Arman, Defence Secretary of India, on behalf of India, are leading the respective delegations, said the ISPR release.
Earlier, Chief of the Indian delegation to the Armed Forces Department met Lt Gen Waqar-uz-Zaman.
Tri Services Staff Talk (TSST) between the two countries will be held today (Tuesday).
It should be noted that defence and security cooperation between Bangladesh and India is currently very intensive. India's continued assistance to the Bangladesh Armed Forces in defence development and training is evident. Every year, many members of the Bangladesh Armed Forces receive training in various institutes in India. Similarly, members of the Indian Armed Forces also are undergoing various trainings in Bangladesh. The armed forces of the two countries have been working together in UN peacekeeping missions at various levels. Exchange of high-level military visits is also another feature of military cooperation between the two countries.
Defence cooperation between Bangladesh and India has a strong foundation, which was built during the Great Liberation War of 1971. This relationship between the two countries is multi-dimensional, multifaceted and ever-evolving. The relationship between these two countries is very strong in all fields including political, economic, cultural. In recent years, military and security relations with India have seen remarkable progress in several areas. This progress has taken mutual cooperation and friendship to a unique height.
