Sri Lanka, June 30 -- Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's five-day visit to China last week was of considerable strategic significance not only for the two countries, but also for India.

The visit was primarily aimed at expanding and facilitating Chinese investment in Bangladesh to increase employment and to enlarge Bangladesh's basket of exportable goods. Bangladesh urgently needs financial support as the economy is in poor shape due to two years of political turmoil.

In 2024, the then-Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, went to Beijing seeking US$ 5 billion in budget support. But the Chinese did not agree on the grounds that the economic conditions in Bangladesh did not justify it. Even today, the economy is in the same condition...