Bilateral Relations

Russian President Vladimir Putin on January 15 met the prime minister of Bangladesh for talks that included the signing of a $1 billion arms contract. Bangladesh's biggest ever arms contract since Independence.

By choosing Bangladesh as the first country to visit, India's Bengali-speaking head of state Pranab Mukherjee, in early March, signalled his intention to clear up the hurdles in bilateral relations.

During mid-July 2013, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the United Kingdom and the East European Republic of Belarus.

The Malaysian Premiere Najib Razak along with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is seen at an innaguration ceremony of a hospital-cum-nursing collage at Gazipur in November.

Bangladesh and the USA signed the much-talked-about Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement (TICFA) deal in Wasington in November.

Bangladesh in 2009 instituted arbitral proceedings concerning the delimitation of the maritime boundary between Bangladesh and India pursuant to Article 287 and Annex VII, Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The hearing began on December 9. The verdict is likely to be announced in 2014.