Chinese envoy meets Jamaat chief, discusses bilateral, party-level ties

Yao Wen, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Bangladesh, met with Dr Shafiqur Rahman, Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, at his residence in Bashundhara on Tuesday, September 16. According to a statement released by the Chinese Embassy, the meeting centered on strengthening China-Bangladesh bilateral relations and exploring avenues for party-to-party cooperation, a rare public acknowledgment of political-level dialogue between Chinese officials and Bangladeshi parties. The meeting follows the Jamaat chief’s tour of China in July this year. While the statement did not disclose specific outcomes or agreements, the meeting underscores China’s continued efforts to maintain broad-based political engagement in Bangladesh reaching beyond the government to include influential political and ideological stakeholders. Jamaat-e-Islami, one of Bangladesh’s oldest Islamist political parties,...