Dhaka – Pakistan Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, ended a high-profile visit to Dhaka that was reckoned as a key point in repairing the long-damaged relationship between the two countries.

FM’s Response to the Question of Apology

The visit created much publicity over a highly sensitive statement made by Dar in response to a most sensitive question on whether Pakistan would apologize formally to Bangladesh over the atrocities that took place in 1971.

Although authorities are yet to give official remarks on his comments, the visit itself has been deemed a major landmark in strengthening the relationship between the two brother nations.

During a press briefing, Dar claimed that the issue of the 1971 war had been “resolved twice” in the past, once in 1974 and again during former President Pervez Musharraf’s visit in the early 2000s. He stated, “between a family, between brothers, once this is done, even Islam tells us to clean your heart.”

FM’s Visit to Bangladesh

The visit of Dar is an attempt to rebuild diplomatic ties with Bangladesh in a bid to end the historical tensions that persist. His visit to Dhaka is an indication of Islamabad’s wish to look beyond decades of mistrust that have characterized the relationship since 1971.

Dar held talks with senior officials, including Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain, and leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. The talks touched on a variety of issues with a view to enhancing bilateral relations.

The visit led to the signing of one agreement and five memorandums of understanding (MoUs). These contracts concern some of the following aspects:

·       Visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders.

·       The establishment of a joint working group on the trade.

·       The foreign service academies of the two nations cooperate.

·       Cooperation with their national news agencies

·       An institutional collaboration between think-tanks

·       A cultural exchange program to build people-to-people contacts.

Though the shadow of 1971 still lingers, Dar’s visit suggested that both Islamabad and Dhaka may be prepared to pivot toward a future defined less by grievance and more by pragmatic cooperation. The ink on these agreements may not erase the scars of history, but it signals a willingness to rewrite the script of Pakistan–Bangladesh relations with dialogue, trade, and cultural exchange.