Italy PM Meloni to visit Dhaka in December

Nepal’s Ambassador to Bangladesh Ghanashyam Bhandari has called for deeper collaboration between the two neighbouring countries in areas including trade, energy, education, tourism, investment, and people-to-people connectivity, emphasizing that stronger cooperation could unlock vast untapped potential in South Asia.

India and the United States are on the verge of finalizing a long-awaited trade agreement that would sharply reduce US tariffs on Indian exports—from the current 50% down to around 15–16%, according to Indian media reports citing officials familiar with the discussions.

Bangladesh and Kuwait have pledged to elevate their long-standing friendship into a broader strategic partnership, agreeing to expand cooperation in areas such as defence, security, trade, energy, and disaster management during their first-ever Political Consultation held in Dhaka.

US President Donald Trump has renewed his warning to India, saying that Washington will maintain `massive` tariffs on Indian goods until New Delhi completely halts its imports of Russian oil.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have reached an agreement on an immediate ceasefire, following marathon negotiations held in Doha, Qatar, and mediated jointly by Qatar and Turkey, according to a statement released early Sunday by Qatar’s Foreign Ministry.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday that his party is answerable only to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and will never act against their interests,

Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and World Food Program (WFP) Acting Executive Director Carl Skau have renewed calls for greater international funding to sustain food assistance for more than a million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, warning that the humanitarian crisis is approaching a breaking point amid dwindling global aid.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced on Monday that he intends to visit Bangladesh by February 2026 to deepen diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations.

Afghanistan and Pakistan said on Oct. 12 they killed dozens of each other`s troops during a night of heavy border clashes between the two countries.

Pakistan closed all major border crossings with Afghanistan on Sunday after intense overnight clashes between the two sides, in which the Taliban-led Afghan government claimed to have killed at least 58 Pakistani soldiers.

Heavy clashes erupted between Taliban and Pakistani forces along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, further straining relations between the two uneasy neighbours. The exchange of fire has drawn urgent appeals for calm from Iran, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia amid growing fears of a wider regional escalation.

Afghanistan’s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived in New Delhi on Thursday for a six-day visit aimed at strengthening political and economic relations with India. marking the first official trip by a Taliban leader since the group regained power in August 2021.

Bangladesh has achieved a landmark diplomatic milestone by being elected president of the 43rd General Conference of UNESCO. the first time the country has ever held this top post in its 53 years of membership with the organization.

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has reaffirmed New Delhi’s commitment to supporting free, fair, and inclusive elections in Bangladesh, saying India will cooperate with whichever government emerges through the people’s mandate.

Bangladesh is advancing plans to modernise its air defence by purchasing 20 advanced J-10CE multirole fighter jets from China at an estimated cost of $2.2 billion (around Tk27,060 crore). 

Bangladesh has urged Washington to further reduce tariffs on its exports, highlighting the steady progress in narrowing the trade imbalance between the two countries.