Vision of IRSEA. Romania has been continuously appreciated as a trustworthy partner by the countries in Asia. The bilateral relations between Romania and the Asian countries are free of direct political issues and with a rich history and dynamic developments over many years. Likewise, the relations between Romania and the Asian states are similarly robust at multilateral level, with a particularly strong cooperation at the UN, ASEM, ASEAN and other international formats.

In the aftermath of her 1989 democratic breakthrough, Romania has channeled utmost efforts towards deepening the integration within the European and Euro-Atlantic structures with an aim to safeguard her new democratic path, security and well-being of the Romanian people; it is against this backdrop that the bilateral relations with countries in other regions of the world have apparently developed at a different pace.

According to the Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis, the country’s bilateral relations with her partners in Asia, and not only, are expected to gain momentum starting with 2023: “At the same time, the investment of new energy is needed to reconnect or keep close, as the case may be, Romania's friends and partners in the Middle East, the Gulf, Africa, the Indo-Pacific and Latin America. In the current moment of global crossroads, it is not geographical distances that matter, but the proximity of values and action in mutual support when needed.” (Speech at the Annual Meeting of Romanian Diplomacy, 2022)

It is in this ambit that IRSEA continues to actively support, through all its means and its status as officially recognized think-tank, Romania’s steady efforts to further strengthen her long, continuous and sincere bilateral relations with her partners and friends in Asia. There is a need to know each other better, which is the target of IRSEA’s newest project titled “IRSEA Bridges to Asia”- an avenue opened for High Officials, Ambassadors, IRSEA partners and professional analysts, from both Asia and Romania.

Bangladesh-Romania Relations

The history of the bilateral relations between People’s Republic of Bangladesh and Romania as well as the current excellent relations, continuously gaining momentum, between the two countries have been reviewed by H.E. Mr. Md. Daud Ali, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh to Romania, also a good friend of IRSEA.

In his well-documented article, His Excellency Ambassador Daud Alipresents the fascinating history of the diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Romania, showcasing some of the most significant moments in the evolution of the relations between the two countries and peoples. Ambassador Daud Ali moves on to assess the on-going bilateral relations and suggests new perspectives for cooperation in various fields.

Bangladesh, a country of South Asia, located in the Delta of the Padma [Ganga] and Jamuna (Brahmaputra) rivers in the north-eastern part of the Indian Subcontinent. The riverine country of Bangladesh (“Land of the Bengals”) is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, and its people are predominantly Muslim. As the eastern portion of the historical region of Bengal, the area once formed, along with what is now the Indian state of West Bengal, the province of Bengal in British India. With the partition of India in 1947, it became the Pakistani province of East Bengal (later renamed East Pakistan), one of five provinces of Pakistan, separated from the other four by 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of Indian territory. In 1971 it became the independent country of Bangladesh, with its capital at Dhaka.

Romania, is a country in south-eastern Europe. The Romanian landscape is approximately one-third mountainous and one-third forested, with the remainder made up of hills and plains. The climate is temperate and marked by four distinct seasons. Romania enjoys a considerable wealth of natural resources: fertile land for agriculture; pastures for livestock; forests that provide hard and soft woods; petroleum reserves; metals, including gold and silver in the Apuseni Mountains; numerous rivers that supply hydroelectricity; and a Black Sea coastline that is the site of both ports and resorts.

The Romanian people derive much of their ethnic and cultural character from Roman influence, but this ancient identity has been reshaped continuously by Romania’s position astride major continental migration routes.

Romania was one of the first European states to recognize newly independent Bangladesh after 1971. Traditional bilateral relations attained a renewed dynamic during the last three years. The year 2021 marked the fostering of bilateral relations with the Romania visit of Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at the invitation of his Romanian counterpart Bogdan Aurescu.

The visit represented the most significant diplomatic contact of high-ranking officials in the last 30 years between Romania and Bangladesh. The re-opening in July 2020 of the Bangladesh Embassy in Romania was another important moment in order to re-strengthen bilateral relations. Previously, a permanent Bangladesh Embassy was active in Bucharest in between 1973 to 1995. Romanian Embassy in Dhaka also closed in 1997. In 2022 the Romanian side established a three-month temporary consulate in Dhaka in order to facilitate the granting of working visas for Bangladeshi citizens. In 2023, another temporary consulate in Romania is being established in Dhaka to expedite pending visa applications. A good number of companies are hiring Bangladeshi skilled and semi-skilled workers mostly in the construction, shipyard, service, logistics etc. sectors.

A few thousand workers from Bangladesh are working in Romania. A lot of Bangladeshi people are now showing interest to come in Romania, as the salary structure is better and the country has good connectivity with Asia and Europe. In 2022, 600+ Bangladeshi students arrived in Romania to study in different universities. So, a Bangladeshi community is near about to form.

The current objectives of the bilateral relation comprise the deepening of the political dialogue and the sectorial economic cooperation, the launching of a joint economic cooperation commission and the organization of a business forum for the promotion of trade exchanges. In 2023, a Foreign office consultation (FOC) is announced to be held in Dhaka between 02 countries.

In 2022, Bangladesh exported $47.4M to Romania. The main product that Bangladesh exported to Romania is ready-made garments. During the last 25 years the exports of Bangladesh to Romania have increased at an annualized rate of 12.1%, from $2.17M in 1995 to $47.4M in 2022. The other exported goods are Electrical and electronic goods, textiles products, vegetables, footwear, fish etc.

On the other hand, in 2022, Romania exported $32.4 M to Bangladesh. The main products that Romania exported to Bangladesh were Sunflower Seeds, Wheat, and Sulphates. During the last 25 years, the exports of Romania to Bangladesh have increased at an annualized rate of 8.77%, from $2.5M in 1995 to $32.4M in 2022.

Also, there are new perspectives for cooperation in the culture, education, labour and consular domains as well as the enhancement of the legal framework in education and economy. Romania and Bangladesh share a significant potential for economic cooperation, digitalization, cyber security, IT, technological transfer, agriculture, food industry and transport. Romania granted 50 thousand euros through UNICEF Bangladesh plan “2020 Join Response Plan for Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis” for water and education infrastructure.

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The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, position or view of IRSEA.