Dhaka, Oct. 30 -- State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir on Friday said Bangladesh and Japan discussed the Bay of Bengal Industrial Growth Belt (BIG-B) concept exclusively in the context of their bilateral economic partnership, ruling out any discussion involving a third country.

"There is no reference to any third country in the joint statement. There is no reference to the Bay of Bengal here. We will not discuss any third country in our discussions with Japan. That's clear. And we did not do that," he said, referring to the joint statement issued following Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's four-day official visit to Japan.

Speaking at a media briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kobir said Bangladesh had made it clear ...