Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will not travel to India to attend the BRICS Summit 2026, a diplomatic source told CNN-News18 on Thursday. According to an official familiar with the matter, Rahman is “keen to visit India at the earliest”. However, he remains concerned about what he would be able to achieve during the visit and what “takeaway points and achievements” he would have to present after returning home.
However, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir today said there is scope for Bangladesh to send a government representative to the BRICS Summit as Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was not invited to the summit and the invitation instead extended to the BIMSTEC Chair.
“How shall we go? Has anyone from the Bangladesh government been invited? Our prime minister was not invited. Who told you that our Prime Minister was invited? The BIMSTEC Chair was invited. Then why are you asking this question?” he told reporters ruling out the possibility of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman attending the BRICS Summit.
‘First India visit cannot be multilateral’
Kobir said Rahman’s first visit to India should be a bilateral trip rather than part of a larger multilateral meeting. He said the Bangladesh government is working towards arranging a separate bilateral visit to India when the timing is suitable.
“We are working on arranging a bilateral visit when the timing is conducive,” Kobir said.
Bangladesh holds BIMSTEC chair
Bangladesh took over the chairmanship of BIMSTEC in April last year for a two-year term. The grouping focuses on cooperation and development among countries around the Bay of Bengal.
BIMSTEC has seven members — Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Bangladesh’s role as the current BIMSTEC chair is also central to the differing accounts over Rahman’s BRICS invitation.
India says invitation was extended
India has confirmed that an invitation was extended to Rahman to attend the BRICS Summit in his capacity as the BIMSTEC chair. At the same time, India said a separate invitation for a bilateral visit has been in place since February this year.
The two developments are therefore being treated separately — Rahman’s possible participation in the BRICS Summit as BIMSTEC chair and his proposed bilateral visit to India as Bangladesh’s prime minister.
For now, Rahman is not expected to attend the BRICS Summit, while Dhaka is working towards arranging his first bilateral visit to India at a mutually suitable time.
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