Advertisement
Bangladesh
AsiaSouth Asia

Bangladesh seeks China’s help on Rohingya refugees’ repatriation: ‘we need the situation to come to an end’

  • Beijing has used its influence in Myanmar to broker a repatriation agreement before, but the Rohingya refugees previously refused to return
  • Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Dhaka on Sunday mostly focused on better trade ties, investment and support for infrastructure development

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Rohingya children wait for food handouts after crossing over from Myanmar to Bangladesh as refugees in 2017. Photo: AP
Associated Pressin Dhaka
Bangladesh sought cooperation from China to repatriate Rohingya refugees to Myanmar during a visit on Sunday by Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who promised better trade ties, investment and support for infrastructure development in the South Asian nation.
Advertisement
China had used its influence in Myanmar to broker a November 2017 agreement to repatriate about 700,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled persecution in Myanmar in August that year. Despite attempts to send them back, the refugees refused, fearing danger in Myanmar, which was exacerbated by the military takeover last year.

Wang arrived in Dhaka on Saturday evening and met Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen. They discussed bilateral and global issues before his departure on Sunday morning, said Shahriar Alam, Bangladesh’s junior minister for foreign affairs.

Bangladesh has strong relations with China, which is a major trade partner mostly for raw materials. But maintaining close ties with Beijing is challenging for Bangladesh, which also balances diplomatic and trade relationships with both India and the United States, China’s main rivals.
More than 500 Chinese companies are active in Bangladesh. China is involved in the country’s major infrastructure projects such as seaports, a river tunnel and highways, and helped build its largest bridge over the River Padma at a cost of US$3.6 billion.

Amid recent cross-strait tensions, Bangladesh issued a statement reiterating its support for the “one-China” policy. After winning elections in 2008, Hasina’s administration closed the Taiwanese business representative office in Dhaka in response to a request from Beijing, and since then China has increased its engagement in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh’s garment industry, which brings in more than 80 per cent of foreign currency from exports, is heavily dependent on China for raw materials.

Advertisement
Advertisement