Bangladesh envoy says ties with Pakistan improving, urges Karachi-Chittagong sea link

A top Bangladeshi diplomat has said that his country’s ties with Pakistan have improved since last year, as he emphasised the need to establish direct sea links between Karachi and Chittagong to boost trade between the two nations.Speaking at an event in the port city on Sunday (November 2), Bangladesh High Commissioner to Pakistan Iqbal Hussain Khan said it was not a secret that ties between the two sides had not been good for the last 10-12 years, but things have changed now.

“Relations have improved at every level and now Bangladeshi citizens are issued visas for Pakistan in 24 hours,” Khan said.

Bangladesh-Pakistan ties were at their lowest ebb during Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League regime, particularly when it initiated in 2010 the trial of collaborators of Pakistani troops during the 1971 Liberation War.
A violent student-led street movement toppled Hasina’s government on August 5, 2024, paving the way for revitalising ties with Islamabad.Khan said that due to the Indian airspace ban on Pakistani flights, it is difficult for passengers from Bangladesh to get direct flights from Dhaka to Pakistani cities.

“We have spoken to Pakistani authorities to find a solution and enable direct flights without hassles between the two countries,” he added.

Khan said that direct flights will help boost trade, tourism and business between the two countries.

He also emphasised that direct sea links between Karachi and Chittagong could reduce transit time and significantly boost trade between the two nations.

Both Pakistan and India have closed their airspace for all flights by both sides, including commercial airlines, since the four-day conflict in May.