The interim government鈥檚 foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Sunday said that Bangladesh wanted peace in South Asia and the prevailing tension between India and Pakistan over the recent killing of 26 tourists in India-administered Kashmir be resolved through bilateral discussions.
鈥極ur position is clear. We want peace in South Asia. We don鈥檛 want any major conflict in the region. We聽 know India and Pakistan have conflicts over various issues for long鈥� We hope the two countries would ease the tension through bilateral talks,鈥� said, Touhid, also a former diplomat, while talking to reporters at the foreign ministry.聽聽聽聽
Asked whether Bangladesh would consider mediating between India and Pakistan amid the escalating tension between the arch-rivals, the adviser said, 鈥楤angladesh at this stage does not want to mediate. But, Bangladesh may consider so if they want. We have good relations with both the countries.鈥櫬犅�
Iran and Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, have sought to diffuse the ongoing India-Pakistan crisis.
About the arrest of 1,000 Bangladeshis in India鈥檚 western state of Gujarat during a sweeping crackdown for staying illegally there as reported in the media on Saturday, Touhid said that Bangladesh was not yet informed about the arrests by the Indian authorities.
Moreover, it was subject to verification whether they were Bangladesh nationals, he said, adding that Bangladesh would certainly bring back if any of those were verified as its citizens.聽
About allegations of harassment of Bangladeshis having valid Indian visas, the foreign affairs adviser said that the government would take appropriate steps if they received any specific complaints in this regard.聽
He added that Bangladesh did not yet issue any travel advisory for India, but suggested that citizens should avoid traveling unless absolutely necessary during this time.
Meanwhile, India and Pakistan exchanged an escalating series of tit-for-tat diplomatic measures on Thursday after New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing the shooting attack in India.
On Thursday, Pakistan postponed its deputy prime minister and foreign minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar鈥檚 visit to Bangladesh scheduled for April 27鈥�28 amid the escalating tension between Islamabad and New Delhi over the deadly attack in India-administered Kashmir on April 22.
