Rahman Skips BRICS Summit as India-Bangladesh Ties Cool — SkimNews
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- Tarique Rahman skipped the BRICS leaders' summit in New Delhi in September 2026 despite receiving two invitations (BIMSTEC outreach and a bilateral visit); Dhaka saw the BRICS invite as a snub since it was issued in his BIMSTEC-chair capacity, not as premier — a departure from how Sheikh Hasina was previously invited.
- Sheikh Hasina's continued exile in India is a core obstacle to normalization: Bangladesh has formally demanded her extradition after she was sentenced to death in absentia for crimes against humanity following her 2024 ouster.
- The thaw remains partial: India resumed tourist visas in June 2026 and appointed Dinesh Trivedi as high commissioner after the BNP won February elections, but a planned bilateral summit is still only under discussion for November.
- Water disputes add friction: the 1996 Ganga Water Sharing Treaty expires in December 2026, and the Teesta water-sharing deal remains unsigned despite years of talks — both are now central to any deal Dhaka will accept.
- China's footprint in Bangladesh is a decade-long build since Dhaka joined the BRI in 2016; Beijing is now Bangladesh's largest trading partner and a major defence supplier, and Rahman made Beijing the destination of his first overseas trip in office in June 2026.
- Geographic leverage still runs both ways: Bangladesh and India share a 4,096-km border (the longest either country has) and 54 rivers, and Bangladesh still depends on India for trade routes, transit, electricity and fuel.
Why it matters: With the 1996 Ganga Water Sharing Treaty expiring in December 2026 and Bangladesh deepening ties with China — now its largest trading partner — New Delhi faces a hard deadline on water rights just as Dhaka recalibrates toward greater strategic autonomy and away from accepting terms dictated by India.
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