March 2, 2023
NEW DELHI – Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen today said no country should be deprived of its due share of water from transboundary rivers, as he pushed forward his five-point plan for long-lasting friendship and peace among South Asian countries.
He also said issues of domestic politics in one country should not hurt the sentiments of the majority of the people in another, reports our New Delhi correspondent.
He also opposed the sudden imposition of tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade, and urged all countries in the region to remove restrictions on cross-border investment.
The minister, who is in Delhi to attend the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting, was delivering a lecture on “Promoting Culture of Peace for Shared Prosperity: A Vision for South Asia”, organised by the Vivekananda International Foundation in New Delhi.
In an apparent reference to the pending issues of the sharing of water of the Teesta and other common rivers with India, he said “geography has destined South Asian countries to take the benefit of nature including rivers and one country should not be deprived of its due share.”
Momen is scheduled to address today the G20 meeting that will be attended by foreign ministers or delegations of 40 countries, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
At the G20 Foreign Minister’s Meeting, Bangladesh will advocate for a comprehensive diplomatic initiative to end the Russia-Ukraine war that is rattling the economies across the world, especially the developing countries, a source said.
He will call on Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and foreign ministers of France and Sweden on the sideline of the formal meeting today. A meeting with Lavrov is also expected.