China encircles India through ports in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and now Bangladesh !

China to develop an economic zone near Bangladesh's second-largest port !

Beijing (China) – During a meeting held here between Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and Chinese President Xi Jinping, an agreement was signed to develop an economic zone near Bangladesh’s Mongla Port. The project could strengthen China’s strategic presence in the Bay of Bengal and the wider Indian Ocean region.

China has invested in ports stretching from Gwadar in Pakistan to Djibouti in East Africa. By gaining access to Bangladesh’s Mongla Port, China has now surrounded India from three sides. China has developed Pakistan’s Gwadar Port, while Beijing also controls Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port in the south. Now, Bangladesh’s Mongla Port to India’s east will further consolidate China’s presence in the Bay of Bengal.

Significantly, Mongla Port was earlier to have been developed by India, and an agreement had also been signed in this regard. However, Bangladesh’s previous interim government under Muhammad Yunus cancelled the agreement.

China has also assured Bangladesh of its support for the Teesta River Management and Restoration Project, a development likely to increase India’s security concerns. Earlier, the government of Sheikh Hasina had expressed its desire that India should undertake the Teesta project.