New Delhi: Amid tensions between New Delhi and Dhaka in recent times, ties between Bangladesh and Pakistan seemed to have increased. Pakistan recently supplied large quantity of RDX and AK47 weapons to Bangladesh by ship, as per sources to TV9 Network.
The Pakistani cargo ship MV Al Bakhera, in which weapons and explosives were hidden, recently left Karachi port for Chandipur port in Bangladesh. As per Indian officials, the ship had a cargo of 720 tonnes of cattle feed and vegetables. However before unloading them, the huge amount of RDX. arms and ammunition were unloaded at a safe location at Chittagong port.
The second cargo ship reached Chittagong Port from Karachi recently
Earlier, there were reports that a second cargo vessel from Karachi reached the Chittagong port recently. The Panama-flagged ship, ‘MV Yuan Xiang Fa Zhan,’ entered Bangladesh earlier this month, the country’s media had reported.
According to reports published in Dhaka Tribune and Daily Observer, the vessel that reached Bangladesh from Karachi via Dubai carried a huge cargo of 811 containers, which contained essential items like soda ash, dolomite, and marble blocks, as well as goods, including garment raw materials, sugar, and electronic products.
Bangladesh traders are being forced to import material from Pakistan
Notably, Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently in Cairo, where both leaders agreed to boost ties. According to The Economic Times, traders in Bangladesh are being forced to import goods from Pakistan. Some officials in Bangladesh have also suggested reviewing the India-Bangladesh shipping agreement, which gives India access to the Chittagong and Mongla ports.
Importantly, India utilised its ties with former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to keep a tab on activities at Chittagong Port, where, around 1,500 boxes of Chinese ammunition were seized in 2004.
