Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman on Monday said the government has not yet decided whether Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will attend the outreach session of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi next month, while urging the media to distinguish between two separate invitations extended by India.
“One is an invitation from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a bilateral visit, while the other is an invitation for the BIMSTEC chair to attend the BRICS Summit,” Khalilur told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“First of all, I am not an astrologer. So, I cannot predict on which exact day it will happen,” he said when asked about the prime minister’s possible visit.
He also clarified that the invitation to attend the BRICS outreach session was not addressed to Tarique Rahman personally, but to Bangladesh in his capacity as chair of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
Khalilur was briefing reporters after Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at the Secretariat.
On August 4, India confirmed that it had invited Tarique to attend the BRICS Summit as the current BIMSTEC chair, while a separate invitation for a bilateral visit to India has been in place since February.
“You would be aware that a formal invitation to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit India was extended when he assumed office in February 2026,” Indian Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a recent media briefing in New Delhi.
“India has separately extended an invitation to the Bangladesh Prime Minister in his capacity as the current Chair of BIMSTEC to attend the outreach session of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi,” he said.
Jaiswal said the invitation was extended in line with the standard practice followed by BRICS for its outreach sessions, with other heads of regional groupings invited in a similar manner.
India will host the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, with discussions expected to focus on global cooperation, trade and sustainable development.
During Monday’s meeting, High Commissioner Trivedi conveyed greetings from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and expressed India’s intention to work with the government and people of Bangladesh in a positive, constructive and forward-looking manner.
The two sides exchanged views on matters of mutual interest and discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral relations through a people-centric approach.
Trivedi also paid a courtesy call on Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed, with discussions focusing on bilateral relations and areas of common interest, including security cooperation.
The high commissioner conveyed India’s willingness to strengthen people-centric cooperation in all areas based on mutual interest, mutual benefit and mutual sensitivities.
BIMSTEC comprises seven countries — Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Bangladesh assumed the chairmanship of BIMSTEC in April 2025 for a two-year term, with a commitment to advancing regional cooperation and development.