It is good to learn that Bangladesh and Cambodia are to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to boost bilateral trade between the two Asian countries.
As Bangladesh inches ever closer to graduating from a least developed country (LDC) to a full fledged middle income economy, building stronger ties with nations will become even more important, as many of the privileges and advantages we enjoyed as an LDC will no longer apply.
As such, it has been encouraging to see that the authorities concerned are showing the right intent in establishing better relations with other economies so that we don’t lose any of the momentum we have been enjoying in recent times.
Cambodia and Bangladesh share much in common, from our dietary preferences to our susceptibility to climate change. Both nations also intend to graduate to a middle-income economy and are currently classified as LDCs.
As such, establishing stronger relations can only be a boost for both nations; beyond the FTA that will naturally garner benefits, the two nations should consider exploring other avenues where collaboration and knowledge-sharing would prove to be mutually beneficial.
However, it was also reassuring to hear Prime Minister Hun Sen state that all efforts to resolve the Rohingya issue will be made. As the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), such words offer some hope that the international community may not be completely absent when it comes to addressing the Rohingya issue.
Ultimately, Bangladesh must continue to embody its age-old principle of “friendship towards all, malice towards none” as expressed by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. It is this principle that will continue to take us to greater heights as a nation.