Sri Lanka to hold 5th BIMSTEC summit

COLOMBO, March 27: Sri Lanka will host the fifth Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit from Monday to Wednesday. The Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that the event will be held in hybrid mode and foreign ministers and senior officials of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Thailand will arrive in Sri Lanka on Sunday. The foreign minister of Myanmar will participate virtually, the foreign ministry said. On March 30, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will chair the BIMSTEC Summit with leaders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Thailand participating virtually, according to the foreign ministry. The ministry said the leaders and senior officials will discuss the progress and the future of BIMSTEC, and a BIMSTEC charter is expected to be adopted during the summit. BIMSTEC groups seven nations of South Asia and Southeast Asia including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.