Why did Muhammad Yunus take U-turn on India's Northeast? Bangladesh now seeks integrated economic plan with Seven Sister states

Bangladesh's interim leader Muhammad Yunus has opted for a swift reversal on his stance on India's Northeast, seeking an economic plan that integrates Bangladesh with the Seven Sister states of India and neighbouring countries like Bhutan and Nepal.

Yunus suggested that Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and the Seven Sisters should cooperate in sectors like healthcare, hydropower and transportation infrastructure. The reason for Yunus's sudden U-turn is likely in response to India's termination of a transhipment facility for Bangladesh in April.

In March, Yunus invited Beijing to collaborate economically with Dhaka, leveraging Bangladesh as the "only guardian of the ocean" for India's Northeast. He said, "The seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the Seven Sisters. They are a landlocked region... and have not way to reach out to the ocean," he said.

He went on to make a shocking remark that this open up a huge possibility and could be "an extension of the Chinese economy." Yunus also bragged that "from Bangladesh, you can go anywhere you want. The ocean is our backyard".

Indian politicians, including the chief ministers of various Northeastern states slammed Yunus. Soon India's Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) terminated a 2020 transhipment agreement allowing Dhaka to export cargoes to countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar via India.

Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar said India's Northeaster region is a connectivity hub for the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), a regional organisation comprising Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.

During the BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok in April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose to greet Yunus with a brief handshake, a stark contrast from his usual "hug diplomacy" where he embraces world leaders to show his friendliness. Modi also pointed out that India's Northeast is at the heart of BIMSTEC.

Following the Pahalgam attack, another controversy was sparked by a retire Bangladeshi major general who suggested that Bangladesh should capture India's Northeastern states in the event of a war between New Delhi and Islamabad. Retired army officer, identified as ALM Fazlur Rahman, also said that Dhaka should join hands with Beijing to capture India's Northeast.

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