BIMSTEC needs to reinvent itself (The Hindu, International relation, GS-2)

14 Apr BIMSTEC needs to reinvent itself (The Hindu, International relation, GS-2)

Posted at 14 Apr 2021 in Current Affairs, GS Paper II, International relation by Swarn Singh 0 Comments

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Context:-The foreign ministers of BIMSTEC met virtually on April 1.

History:-

In 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
4 Member States with the acronym ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri-Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
Nepal and Bhutan included in 2004.
Members are
- Five are from South Asia –
  - Bangladesh
  - Bhutan
  - India
  - Nepal
  - Sri Lanka
- Two are from Southeast Asia –
  - Myanmar
  - Thailand
initial 20 years this group was dormant but due to faltering of SAARC in 2016 this group got the oxygen and revived.
since then we have regular meeting, working on BIMSTEC Charter.
Recent study of FIICI shows that BIMSTEC must have comprehensive free trade economic cooperation agreement.
- It should cover
  - trade in goods, services and investment
  - promote regulatory harmonization
  - adopt policies that develop regional value chains
  - eliminate non-tariff barriers.
What has achieved till now
- Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief and security
- counterterrorism
- cyber security
- coastal security cooperation
Hurdles which must be over come or way forward
- cordial and tension-free bilateral relations among all its member-states.
- uncertainties over SAARC hovers
- China’s decisive intrusion in the South-Southeast Asian space
- the military coup in Myanmar, brutal crackdown of protesters