Latest news with #BangladeshNavy
Hindustan Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Bangladesh cancels deal with Indian shipbuilding firm amid strained ties
Bangladesh has cancelled a $21 million deal with a Kolkata-based Indian state-run shipbuilding firm for the construction of an advanced ocean-going tugboat amid strained relations between the two sides since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's removal from power last year. The move comes days after India on Saturday restricted imports of ready-made garments from Bangladesh only to Kolkata and Nhava Sheva ports. The Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE) signed a contract for the tugboat with the Bangladesh Navy in July 2024, a month before Hasina was ousted from power. The GRSE wrote a letter to the National Stock Exchange of India Limited about the contract cancellation. '...In terms of Regulation 30 and other applicable provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, as amended (the 'SEBI Listing Regulations'), we wish to inform you that the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh has cancelled the order,' said the company on Wednesday in an exchange filing. The contract was signed as India and Bangladesh agreed to strengthen defence cooperation with a long-term perspective during Hasina's visit to India in June 2024. The deal with the GRSE for an 800-tonne ocean-going tugboat was the first major contract under India's $500 million line of credit for defence purchases. New Delhi this month barred imports of Bangladeshi consumer goods through 11 land border posts in the northeast. This restriction was expected to impact Bangladesh's annual ready-made garments exports to India, worth about $700 million. As many as 93% of these goods were exported through land ports In April, India ended an arrangement for the transshipment of Bangladeshi export cargo to third countries via Indian airports and ports. Bangladesh stopped yarn exports from India through land ports on April 13. Bangladesh was India's biggest trading partner in the subcontinent in FY24. India was Bangladesh's second-largest export partner, accounting for 12% of total exports. India's exports to Bangladesh were worth $11.06 billion in FY24. The imports from Bangladesh stood at $1.8 billion during the same period. Bangladesh interim government head Muhammad Yunus's remarks, appearing to leverage the geographical isolation of India's northeastern states while seeking Chinese investments, strained the relationship further. Yunus said India's landlocked northeast, sharing a nearly 1,600-km border with Bangladesh, has no way to reach the ocean except through his country, and added this opens up a huge possibility of an extension of the Chinese economy.
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Bangladesh cancels $21 million order given to Indian defence shipyard
NEW DELHI: Amid the nose-dive in bilateral ties, Bangladesh has cancelled an order worth $21 million (around Rs 180 crore) inked with Kolkata-based defence shipyard Garden Reach Shipbuilding & Engineers (GRSE) last year for the construction of an 800-tonne advanced ocean-going tug. The contract, which included design, construction and delivery of a 61-metre-long tug in 24 months, was the first major deal inked under the $500-million line of credit for defence purchases extended by New Delhi to Dhaka that was operationalised in 2023. The deal for the tug, with the maximum speed with a full load of at least 13 knots, was signed by officials of the Bangladesh Navy's directorate general of defence purchases and GRSE in Dhaka in July last year. The contract had coincided with Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi's four-day visit to Bangladesh to further consolidate defence ties and explore new avenues for maritime cooperation. The ouster of the then PM Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh in Aug last year, however, has hit bilateral ties. India had earlier steadily stepped-up military ties with Bangladesh, which incidentally acquired its first-ever diesel-electric submarines from China a few years ago, to counter Beijing's strategic inroads into the country. Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi had earlier this year said India and Bangladesh consider each other "strategically important" neighbours and any kind of "animosity" between the two countries is not in the interest of either.
New Indian Express
21-05-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Luanda meets Lutyens: How India is going beyond energy to deepen ties with Angola
While much of the international and domestic media spotlight was shining rightly on smoke billowing from battlegrounds and cathedrals, a quieter but important shift occurred in the corridors of New Delhi's Hyderabad House this month: the first visit of an Angolan head of state in nearly four decades. India and Angola formally established diplomatic relations in 1985, but for much of the past four decades, their interactions remained largely limited to the energy trade. Angola has consistently been one of India's top three oil suppliers from sub-Saharan Africa. In 2023–24, bilateral trade touched USD 4.2 billion, dominated by Angola's oil exports and India's pharmaceutical and machinery exports. What is new and notable in 2025 is the strategic diversification of this relationship. India's approval of a USD 200 million Defence Line of Credit (LoC) to Angola, alongside MoUs in agriculture, traditional medicine, and culture, reflects a broadening canvas. It also echoes India's approach with other African nations, like Seychelles, Rwanda, and Mozambique, where New Delhi blends development cooperation with defence diplomacy and capacity building. This credit line is intended to facilitate the procurement of Indian defence equipment, overhaul existing Soviet-era platforms, and provide training to Angolan military personnel. India extended a $100 million LoC to Vietnam in 2014 for the procurement of patrol boats. In 2017, it provided a $500 million LoC to Bangladesh for defence procurement. This was operationalised in 2023, with the Bangladesh Navy and India's Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers signing the first major contract in 2024. This form of defence diplomacy is twofold: it promotes India's indigenous defence industry under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative and builds India's role as a reliable security partner in the Global South. Angola, while not a terror hotspot, does face localised unrest in its Cabinda province and sits adjacent to the increasingly unstable Sahel region, necessitating vigilance. India's support in defence readiness could help Angola play a stabilising role in Southern Africa, while strengthening counterterrorism cooperation would help prevent the spillover of terrorist activities. India is also among the largest suppliers of generic medicines to Angola. With growing healthcare demands in Angola and weak local manufacturing, Indian pharmaceutical companies play a crucial role in public health diplomacy. A memorandum on cooperation in Ayurveda and traditional medicine was signed. Angola also became the 123rd member of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), a flagship initiative of Indian climate diplomacy. They are part of a larger effort by India to institutionalise South–South cooperation on sustainable development, health, and clean energy.
Iraqi News
22-04-2025
- General
- Iraqi News
Indian Ocean drill unites Russian and Bangladeshi navies in show of partnership
The Russian Pacific Fleet and the Bangladesh Navy conducted joint naval exercises in the Indian Ocean this week, reinforcing military cooperation between the two nations and honouring a legacy of Soviet-era assistance. According to the Russian Navy's Pacific Fleet press office, quoted by Russian media, the PASSEX-type drills took place following a port call in Chattogram (formerly Chittagong) and featured tactical training, coordination exercises, and real-time replenishment at sea, reports. 'During their visit to this friendly country, both sides agreed to carry out a joint naval exercise,' the fleet's statement read. The drills included communication training, joint manoeuvring, and nighttime command coordination under radio silence, using only signal lights for communication. Sailors also practised resupplying fuel and freshwater at sea, using the Russian fleet's medium sea tanker Pechenga. Russia's participating vessels included the Steregushchiy-class corvettes Rezkiy and Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, alongside the support tanker Pechenga. From Bangladesh, the BNS Umar Farooq (a Chinese-built Type 053H3 frigate), BNS Prottoy (a Shadhinata-class corvette), and BNS Durjoy (a Durjoy-class large patrol craft) took part. The joint exercise capped off a port visit in Chattogram, where Russian crews also attended commemorative events recognising Soviet naval assistance in the early 1970s. From 1972 to 1974, Soviet Navy personnel helped demine and reopen Chattogram Port following the Bangladesh Liberation War, a gesture remembered by both nations as a symbol of enduring cooperation. The Russian Pacific Fleet stated that the ships have now resumed their long-range deployment mission.
