Indian Foreign Secretary Gokhale in Dhaka

Indian Foreign Secretary Vijay Keshav Gokhale arrived in Dhaka on Sunday on a two-day official visit. Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Shahidul Haque received his Indian counterpart at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 4:30pm. Diplomatic sources said Gokhale will finalize the schedule of the meeting between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Commonwealth Summit in London. The meeting between the two prime ministers is likely to be held on April 19 or 20 on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). During the meeting, the premiers will discuss a wide range of bilateral and regional issues and review the implementation of the 62-point joint statement issued during Hasina's India visit in April 2017. Gokhale will call on Prime Minister Hasina and Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and also hold a bilateral meeting with Shahidul. The Indian foreign secretary also held a closed-door meeting with a select group of people representing media and civil society at a city hotel Sunday evening. There, he said India was keen to see an early solution to the Rohingya crisis as it thought the issue might emerge as a "serious security concern" for them having borders with both Bangladesh and Myanmar. India also wanted to see Myanmar to take steps as per the repatriation agreement signed with Bangladesh to resolve the crisis, Gokhale said.Rohingya, Teesta to dominate talks todayBangladesh and India will discuss the whole range of bilateral issues, including the much-sought Teesta water sharing and Rohingya issues, during the official talks to be held in Dhaka today. Shahidul and Gokhale will hold the talks at two state guest houses -- Padma and Meghna. The meeting will begin at 9am and continue till 12:30pm. Bangladesh is expected to seek stronger support from India to expedite the Rohingya repatriation process and an update on Teesta water sharing issue, a diplomatic source said. The meeting will be followed by signing of some Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), mostly on development and cooperation programs, and Gokhale will make a press statement at 12 noon. The two sides are also expected to exchange views on regional and international issues of common interest, officials said. Gokhale is scheduled to attend a Bilateral Conclave on India-Bangladesh Relations: "Deepening Cooperation and the Way Ahead" organized by the Institute for Policy, Advocacy and Governance (IPAG) Monday afternoon, with the prime minister's International Affairs Adviser Gowher Rizvi being present as the chief guest.