Dhaka, August 23, 2025: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar arrived in Dhaka on Saturday for a two-day official visit, the first by a Pakistani foreign minister in 13 years, according to the Foreign Office (FO).
The visit comes against the backdrop of a thaw in ties between Islamabad and Dhaka following last year’s political change in Bangladesh, which saw Sheikh Hasina’s government ousted. Since then, bilateral relations and trade cooperation have seen a notable improvement.
Dar was received at the airport by Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Ambassador Asad Alam Siam, Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Dhaka Imran Haider, Bangladesh High Commissioner to Islamabad Muhammad Iqbal Khan, and other senior officials.
According to the FO, Dar’s engagements will include meetings with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, Adviser for Foreign Affairs Md Touhid Hossain, and Adviser for Commerce SK Bashir Uddin. “Discussions will cover the full spectrum of bilateral cooperation as well as regional and global issues of mutual interest,” the FO said.
During the first day of his visit, Dar met a delegation of the National Citizen Party (NCP) led by General Secretary Akhtar Hossain. He praised the NCP’s vision for reform and social justice and underlined the importance of youth exchanges between Pakistan and Bangladesh. The two sides also discussed cultural cooperation.
Dar separately held talks with a Jamaat-i-Islami delegation led by Naib Amir Dr Syed Abdullah Mohammed Taher. “Ways to strengthen Pakistan-Bangladesh relations and regional developments were discussed,” the FO stated, adding that Dar lauded the Jamaat leadership’s resilience in the face of political hardships.
The FO described Dar’s trip as a “historic visit,” highlighting that it marks the first official visit to Bangladesh by a Pakistani foreign minister since November 2012, when then-FM Hina Rabbani Khar visited Dhaka to deliver an invitation to Sheikh Hasina for a summit in Islamabad.
According to Bangladeshi state news agency BSS, Dar’s formal meetings with senior leadership are scheduled for Sunday. The visit is also expected to see the signing of four to five memorandums of understanding (MoUs) covering trade, culture, media, training, and travel.
The trip follows a series of recent high-level contacts. Last month, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi visited Dhaka, where the two countries agreed on visa-free entry for diplomatic and official passport holders. Earlier, in February, direct government-to-government trade resumed with Bangladesh exporting 50,000 tonnes of rice to Pakistan, while Fly Jinnah also secured approval to operate flights between Karachi and Dhaka.
The warming ties were set in motion earlier this year when Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch visited Dhaka for Foreign Office Consultations after a 15-year gap. Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan’s recent trip also laid groundwork for a Pakistan-Bangladesh joint working group on trade.
