Bangladesh and the Great Powers

India and China in South Asia: Bangladesh’s Opportunities and Challenges

“…The latest administration has taken a two-pronged foreign policy of both courting Western countries as well as Eastern countries—specially China and Japan, since these two are the most formidable sources for loans and investment in Bangladesh and for prioritizing economic diplomacy (Bhattacharya, 2019). The country, for some time now, has been seen as a destination for great powers as well (Yasmin, 2016). There has been a qualitative change in the last few decades as Bangladesh has been able to portray itself not only as country ridden with natural disasters and political turmoil but as the ‘disaster capital’ of the world, turning its geographic constraints into a ‘geographic dividend’, and through its continuous engagements in the United Nations Peacekeeping Operations (UNPKOs), it has emerged as a ‘keeper’ of international peace and security (Zaman, 2016).…”

“…Historically, Russia and India have enjoyed an all-weather relationship in the subcontinent, despite the growing Indo-US ties, and it is often argued that Russia’s renewed interest in Bangladesh is deliberated to contain China in South Asia (Upadhyay, 2013). Owing to the changing geopolitical scenario in South Asia, ‘Russia also needs a strategic foothold in the subcontinent that Bangladesh fulfils in its own right’ (Yasmin, 2016). Bangladesh and Russia have initiated cooperation in the energy sector since 2010, and at present, Russia is funding the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.…”

“…It has achieved foreign policy independence in recent years, where its geographic predicaments no longer set its foreign policy objectives and goals. Its lynchpin position at the mouth of the Bay of Bengal has made it attractive to a number of extra-regional powers (Yasmin & Masud, 2016) and to both China and India as well. While Bangladesh can provide access for China’s landlocked western provinces, India also needs to check and balance China’s growing influence in the region.…”

Development of International Relations at the Periphery: The Case of Bangladesh

“…Therefore, it did not hesitate to cultivate friendship going beyond its Indo-Soviet axis which was instrumental in achieving independence. Soon, Bangladesh looked towards more potent sources to diversify its need for foreign aid [Yasmin 2016]gradually, the United States and the Arab World came to respond to Bangladesh's need.…”

“…The increasing Chinese interest in Bangladesh has not gone unnoticed by other countries, which have made them to court Bangladesh in a manner that has not been seen in the past. Bangladesh has seen an increasing involvement of great powers in the second decade of 21st century, where Russia vows to come back to Bangladesh for "a long time" and "seriously", with Japan identifying Bangladesh at the lynchpin position at the mouth of the Bay of Bengal [Yasmin 2016]. Japan provided Bangladesh with the largest sum of overseas development aid (ODA) in 2016 till date and also initiated the Bay of Bengal Industrial Growth Belt (BIG-B) to explore the potentials of the Bay of Bengal region.…”