Hasina in Beijing on 4-day visit

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina reached Beijing yesterday on a four-day bilateral visit to China at the invitation of her Chinese counterpart Li Qiang.

A special Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight, carrying the prime minister and her entourage members, touched down at Beijing Capital International Airport at 6:00pm (local time).

During her stay in Beijing, Hasina will have a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. She will also hold a delegation-level bilateral meeting with the Chinese prime minster tomorrow.

Bangladesh and China are likely to sign 20 to 22 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) during the premier’s visit, said Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud.

Speaking at a press conference at the foreign ministry in Dhaka on Sunday, the minister said inauguration of a number of projects will also be announced during the PM’s visit to China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Bangladesh in October 2016 when the relationship between the two countries was elevated to a strategic partnership.

The two countries would celebrate the golden jubilee of the diplomatic relations next year.

The Bangladesh premier’s visit to China is taking place within 15 days after her tour of India from June 21 to 22.

Jin Liqun, president of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, will pay a courtesy call on Hasina at the meeting room of her place of residence today.

The premier will join a summit on Trade, Business and Investment Opportunities between Bangladesh and China at the China World Summit Wing in Beijing.

In the afternoon, a meeting is scheduled to be held between the prime minister and the president of Consultative Party at the Great Hall of the People, Beijing.

Hasina will also place a wreath at the Monument to the People’s Heroes at Tiananmen Square.

In the evening, she will attend a dinner hosted in her honour by the Bangladesh envoy to China at the Bangladesh House in Beijing.

On July 10, a delegation-level bilateral meeting, led by Hasina and Li Qiang, will be held at the Great Hall of the People.

She will later attend a banquet hosted by the Chinese premier at the same venue.

In the afternoon, Hasina will call on Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People.

The Bangladesh premier is scheduled to depart from Beijing Capital International Airport at 11:00am (Beijing time) on July 11 by a special Biman flight.

The flight is scheduled to land at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, Dhaka, at 2:00pm (Bangladesh time) the same day.