Bangkok keen to initiate coastal shipping links with Dhaka
UNB
Thailand has shown interest to introduce a coastal shipping trading route between Ranong port of Thailand and Chittagong port of Bangladesh to enhance bilateral trade with Bangladesh, reports UNB. Governor of the Ranong Province of Thailand conveyed this during an official meeting with Bangladesh Ambassador in Thailand Saida Muna Tasneem, at the governors office, according to a message received here from Bangkok yesterday. Bangladesh Ambassador Saida Muna Tasneem while talking to Thai press following her official talks with Governor of the Ranong Province and Deputy Director General of the Port Authority of Thailand said a key foreign policy focus on Bangladesh is to enhance connectivity with Thailand.
Were, therefore, exploring the feasibility of introducing coastal shipping connectivity between Chittagong port in the Bay of Bengal and Ranong port located in the of Andaman coast in south western Thailand to boost bilateral trade cooperation, she said.
The Envoy also said direct shipping links between Chittagong Port of Bangladesh and Ranong Port of Thailand could cut down bilateral shipping cost by at least a third and save shipment time while compared to the present route via Singapore. The Bangladesh ambassador, accompanied by officers of the embassy of Bangladesh in Thailand and a large business delegation comprising major exporters from Thailand to Bangladesh, was on a two-day visit to Ranong province to see the available capacities and infrastructure of the Ranong port and assess the feasibility of coastal shipping links between Ranong and Chittagong ports. We want to see Ranong Port located on the Andaman Sea as the gateway for connecting Thailand to Bimstec countries and as a shipping hub at Andaman Sea, transporting goods from Thailand to the ports of Yangon, Chittagong, Kolkata, Chennai and Colombo, said the governor of Ranong Province during the meeting. A fresh MoU may be signed between the port authority of Thailand and port authority of Chittagong for including coastal shipping and other bilateral cooperation. The subject of coastal shipping links between Bangladesh and Thailand was first discussed earlier in June this year during the First Foreign Office Consultations between the two countries. During her two-day visit to Ranong on November 24-25, the Bangladesh ambassador held a series of meetings separately with the leaders of the Ranong Fisheries Industries and business leaders of Ranong Province including president of Ranong Chamber of Commerce and president of Ranong Federation of Industries.
