FM Dar meets Bangladesh’s Yunus during historic visit as ‘revitalising Saarc’ comes under focus

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday met Bangladesh Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus during his landmark visit to Dhaka during which the latter stressed the need to revitalise regional cooperation through South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc). Ever since a popular uprising in Bangladesh saw Sheikh Hasina’s government toppled in August of last year, there has been a thaw in ties between Islamabad and Dhaka, with trade and bilateral relations seeing a marked improvement. The Foreign Office has termed Dar’s two-day visit — the first by a Pakistani foreign minister to Bangladesh in 13 years — a “significant milestone” in the two countries’ relations. According to a post on X by the Foreign Office (FO), Dar called on Yunus and apprised him of the developments during his trip. The pair discussed “recent developments in the region and the prospects of regional cooperation”.