Bangladesh-China Relations in Focus as PM Tarique Rahman Starts Official Visit

Bangladesh-China Relations in Focus as PM Tarique Rahman Starts Official Visit

Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has begun his three-day visit to China, which is likely to see discussions on the Teesta plan as well. A special Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight carrying the prime minister and his wife, Zubaida Rahman, landed at Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport at 11:05 pm on Monday.

Tarique Rahman will participate in the 17th Annual Meeting of the New Champions (Summer Davos Forum 2026) organised by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Dalian. Rahman will attend a banquet to be hosted by Chinese Premier Li Qiang this evening. He will also meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on this trip when he travels to Beijing later.

On 24 June, Tarique Rahman will hold a meeting with the prime minister of Kazakhstan and later depart Dalian for Beijing by high-speed train later in the day. Rahman will also meet leaders of other countries on the trip.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun has said that the Chinese side sees the visit as an opportunity to work with Bangladesh’s new government to strengthen strategic communication, carry forward traditional friendship, advance Belt and Road cooperation, expand exchanges and cooperation across all sectors, boost coordination on multilateral affairs, and promote the China-Bangladesh comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

India will be closely watching any announcement on the Teesta plan. In January this year, the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and Chinese state-owned POWERCHINA signed an extension to a memorandum of understanding, pushing the Teesta Comprehensive Management and Restoration Project forward.

The main objectives of the project are river training to control the Teesta River regime; capital dredging and maintenance dredging; building new embankments and repairing existing ones; land reclamation by dredged materials; and management of dry season flow by building storage.

But India has concerns over China’s involvement in the project. Given the area’s location and proximity to the strategically sensitive Siliguri Corridor (Chicken’s Neck), any expansion of external influence in the area, especially China’s presence, could intensify India’s security concerns and create potential strategic vulnerabilities for a corridor that connects India’s Northeast region to the rest of the country.

China’s influence in Bangladesh has been growing steadily. China says mutual trust between the two countries has been deepened, and practical cooperation has yielded fruitful results, bringing tangible benefits to the two peoples.

There are plans to sign several bilateral instruments; discussions on infrastructure projects, investment promotion, and potential financial support underline the economic weight of the relationship. Dhaka also sees Beijing as a key source of technology, industrial investment, and development financing, Bangladesh Sangbad Sanstha reported.

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As China and Bangladesh enter the next phase of their diplomatic relations, the “Golden 50 Years”, the premier’s first visit to China comes at a significant moment, officials said.

When it comes to visiting India, sources close to the Bangladesh PM says, “a visit to India would take place when the temperature comes down and a conducive atmosphere is in place.” Officials add that the domestic mood, along with certain issues, remains in the relationship with India, but Bangladesh’s relationships with countries like India and China are not a zero-sum game.

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(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by VoM News staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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