Dhaka: Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman has reaffirmed Bangladesh's unwavering support and commitment to revitalise the SAARC process. The Minister expressed Bangladesh's readiness to take proactive initiatives to strengthen and revitalise SAARC during a meeting with the Secretary General of SAARC, Md. Golam Sarwar, on Tuesday.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the Foreign Minister reiterated Bangladesh's conviction in abiding by the principles enshrined in the SAARC Charter, which include sovereign equality, territorial integrity, political independence, non-interference in internal affairs, and mutual benefit of the peoples of member states. The Foreign Minister recalled that the idea of regional cooperation in South Asia was first proposed by Bangladesh in the early 1980s by late President Ziaur Rahman to promote people's welfare, improve quality of life, and strengthen collective self-reliance in the region.
As one of the founder members and the host of the very first SAARC Summit in December 1985, and again in 1993 and 2005, Bangladesh acknowledges the valuable role of SAARC in fostering common regional values and promoting cooperation in key areas such as trade, investment, connectivity, climate change, food security, culture, and people-to-people contacts, he said.