Moscow cites key gains from Khalilur's visit

Moscow on Wednesday outlined a series of outcomes from Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman's three-day official visit, highlighting enhanced cooperation in trade, technology, nuclear energy and multilateral forums.

According to a summary released by the Russian Embassy in Dhaka, the two sides discussed matters of mutual interests and reviewed avenues for expanding bilateral cooperation.

Khalilur paid an official visit to Russia from 7-9 June at the invitation of the Russian counterpart.

Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir accompanied the foreign minister during the visit.

As part of the visit, Khalilur held official talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on 8 June, during which the two sides had a detailed exchange of views on a broad range of bilateral, regional and international issues.

The Bangladesh foreign minister also met Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council of Russia Konstantin Kosachev.

“Both sides noted that the current volume of bilateral trade remains below its potential and agreed that commercial cooperation could be significantly expanded,” the Russian Embassy said.

It said that discussions covered the development of new payment channels and financial mechanisms aimed at facilitating trade and strengthening economic ties between the two countries.

During the talks, Khalilur sought Russia's support for concluding a free trade agreement between Bangladesh and the Eurasian Economic Commission to further boost trade and investment.

The two countries also discussed cooperation in multilateral platforms with Bangladesh expressing interest in becoming an official member of BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

Lavrov congratulated Khalilur on his election as President of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and pledged Russia's support during his tenure.

Cooperation in advanced technologies featured prominently in the discussions.

The two sides agreed to work together on the application of artificial intelligence in healthcare and agriculture, while Khalilur proposed a visit by a Russian delegation to Bangladesh to explore potential collaboration in the sector.

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The proposal received a positive response from the Russian side, the embassy said.

In another key engagement, the foreign minister met Director General of Russia's state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom Alexey Likhachev.

The meeting reviewed the progress of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project and discussed prospects for further Bangladesh-Russia cooperation in the field of nuclear energy.

The visit marked Khalilur's first official trip to Russia since assuming office as foreign minister and came shortly after his election as president of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly.