ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Friday that he sought to “deepen cooperation” between Pakistan and Bangladesh as he sent good wishes to Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus who took oath as interim government’s chief advisor on Thursday. Yunus’s appointment to lead the South Asian country’s interim government came after violent protests by a student-led movement forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee the country earlier this week.
The protests resulted in the tragic death of more than 400 people, mostly consisting of young students.
Sharif, 72, took to X, to congratulate Yunus, 84, and wrote: “Heartiest felicitations to Professor Muhammad Yunus on his swearing-in as Chief Adviser of the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.
“Wishing him great success in guiding Bangladesh towards a harmonious and prosperous future. I look forward to working with him to deepen cooperation between Pakistan and Bangladesh in the days ahead.”
Yunus, who was previously in Paris for medical treatment, returned to his home town on Thursday after Bangladesh’s after student protesters backed him for the role in a government tasked with holding elections for a new leader.
Yunus, a staunch critic of Hasina, is known as “banker to the poor” and received the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for founding a bank that pioneered the fight on poverty through small loans to needy borrowers.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, Pakistan and Bangladesh established diplomatic relations in December 1975.
Bangladesh remains Pakistan’s largest trading partner in South Asia as volume of bilateral tradehovers, annually, around $800 to $900 million.
Pakistan hosts a large number of the people of Bengali origin. Owing to shared history and common faith, the people-to-people relations are of fraternity and goodwill.
Pakistan and Bangladesh have institutionalised mechanisms of dialogue such as Bilateral Political Consultations and Joint Economic Commission. They also cooperate on various multilateral fora, including United Nations and Organization of Islamic Cooperation. –Agencies
