Sheepon Chowdhury
Bangladesh-Myanmar ties date back centuries. Following Bangladesh’s emergence as an independent nation in 1971, Myanmar was the 6th country to recognize her sovereignty on 13 January 1972. U Ne Win, the former President of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma (Myanmar) was the first Asian Head of State to visit Dhaka on 26 April 1974 for a four-day official tour. Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Abdus Samad Azad visited Myanmar in May 1972, his second overseas visit after independence (the first being India). In that visit, Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister acknowledged Myanmar’s support to Bangladesh’s admission to the World Health Organization. On 3 August 1973, Bangladesh and Myanmar signed Trade Agreement to boost bilateral trade and commerce. Such high-level contact implies that both Bangladesh and Myanmar attached great significance towards forging strong bilateral ties. One can argue that peaceful co-existence and unneighborly amity were the defining features of Bangladesh-Myanmar relations at the earlier stage.
Bangladesh, Myanmar and China have already been holding tripartite talks
on Rohingya issue. This forum can go beyond Rohingya issue and address
other areas of mutual interest such as connectivity, energy cooperation and cross-border trades
Despite a promising beginning, lack of political will, trust, and mutual understanding created impediments in promoting Bangladesh-Myanmar relations over the decades. Hence, despite rich historical legacy and initial positive gestures, the contours of Bangladesh and Myanmar relations were shaped mostly with conflicts and differences, rather than possibilities and cooperation. Over the years, the Rohingya issue has emerged as the sole determining factors in the ties between these two countries. With the first massive exodus of 200,000 Rohingyas into Bangladesh in 1978, the relations between two next door neighbors entered a phase of tension, blame games, push backs, and push ins. As the persecution of Rohingyas worsened over the years under the military and a short-lived hybrid regime in Naypyidaw, the areas of mutual interests lay unexplored.
Closest, not distant beighbor
Bangladesh’s policy towards Myanmar has been overshadowed by security interests for the most part, since the differences over Rohingya question and maritime boundary issues obstructed other potential areas of cooperation. Although the presence of Dhaka and Naypyidaw slowly weakened in each other’s strategic radar, there has always been strands of diplomatic gestures and an impulse to revive the ties for the better, according to knowledgeable quarters. Unfortunately, the questions of reciprocity persisted and weak political commitments let the two sides of the border get bogged down with other policy priorities. However, time calls for a sea change in Bangladesh. Myanmar tops the list in priorities of Bangladesh’s own Look East policy. As Bangladesh’s burgeoning economy looks around for new markets and connectivity networks, its eastern neighbor shows immense promise. This is equally promising for Myanmar, whose economy lay in ruins after the coup last year. However, this requires frank and sincere engagement on a number of issues:
First, Rohingya crisis has been an impediment to advance relations between both countries. Successful repatriation of Rohingyas and firm commitment to non-refoulement will create hundreds of possibilities in Myanmar-Bangladesh relations. Solving Rohingya issue can open a new window for the legitimacy of Naypyidaw regime as it faces growing international isolation for its dealing with minorities and dissents.
Second, Bangladesh and Myanmar enjoy geo-strategic advantages. Bangladesh has been eyeing on joining India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway. In this case, greater connectivity can be forged as both Bangladesh and Myanmar are members of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor (BCIM).
Third, there needs to be reciprocity of friendly and neighborly gestures between both parties. Even in the midst of Rohingya refugee crisis, Bangladesh maintained friendly and good relations with Myanmar. After coup, the defense attaché of Bangladesh embassy in Myanmar joined a parade on Myanmar Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw, on 27 March 2021, one of the eight countries in the world to do so, knowing that this would draw considerable western ire. It is time for Myanmar to reciprocate and work hand-in-hand with Bangladesh.
Fourth, there is immense scope to promote security cooperation between Bangladesh and Myanmar. The activities of Myanmar-based separatist groups and transnational crime rackets (i.e., human and drug trafficking) have shown the importance of cooperation between Myanmar and Bangladesh for a safer border. In recent times, Bangladesh and Myanmar both participated in Indian Navy’s largest multilateral exercise Milan 2022. It is time for both the countries to participate in more military training courses and regular staff talks for enhancing trust and mutual confidence.
Fifth, the current military regime in Myanmar needs to understand the importance of blue economy and other maritime cooperation with Bangladesh for a win-win situation. Bay of Bengal as a common maritime space, IUU fishing, marine pollution, ocean acidification, climate change, human trafficking and other non-traditional security challenges can be addressed by forging cooperation between Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Finally, the current Russia-Ukraine war can give a lesson to Myanmar and Bangladesh that diplomacy is always a preferable choice to resolve any conflict than war. Bangladesh and Myanmar have resolved maritime boundary dispute delimitation in 2012 peacefully through diplomacy. This implies that Bangladesh and Myanmar can also do the same for Rohingya. With its influence over Myanmar and good gestures towards Bangladesh, China can play a major role as mediating between Bangladesh and Myanmar and forge meaningful ties based on strong political will and deep mutual understanding. Bangladesh, Myanmar and China have already been holding tripartite talks on Rohingya issue. This forum can go beyond Rohingya issue and address other areas of mutual interest such as connectivity, energy cooperation and cross-border trades. But first of all, the regime in Myanmar needs to understand that for its own long term interest, Rohingya crisis must be resolved.
Sheepon Chowdhury is an independent researcher who is interested in global politics
