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Joint Press Release on the Meeting of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal on the Motor Vehicles Agreement (BBIN MVA)

February 08, 2020

  • A meeting of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal on the BBIN MVA was held at New Delhi on 08 Feb 2020. Representatives of Bhutan participated in the meeting in an observer capacity as decided by the Royal Government of Bhutan earlier. The Bangladesh delegation was led by Mr Mohammad Sarwar Mahmood, Director General (South Asia), Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Nepalese delegation was led by Mr Gopal Prasad Sigdel, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport. The Indian delegation was led by Mr Vikram Doraiswami, Additional Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs. The Bhutanese observer team was led by Mr Pem Tshering, Legal Officer, Ministry of Information and Communications. The meeting was held to discuss the passenger and cargo Protocols that are to give effect to the Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) for the Regulation of Passenger, Personal and Cargo Vehicular Traffic between Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal, signed on 15 June 2015. This is the first meeting of the group since their meeting in Bengaluru in January 2018, when the two Protocols were last discussed.
  • Delegations recalled commitments made at the highest political level for implementation of the BBIN MVA and the importance of trade, economic cooperation and people-to-people contact, through enhanced regional connectivity, including through facilitation of regional cross-border road transport. Delegations expressed satisfaction over progress made by each country in internal consultations with their stake-holders for the Protocol for movement of Passengers. Delegations also discussed in detail various aspects of the draft Protocol for movement of cargo vehicles, discussing the existing draft text jointly for the first time. In this regard, the three delegations reaffirmed their understanding that the BBIN MVA safeguards the rights and obligations of all parties under other international Agreements and bilateral agreements within the group, including those relating to landlocked countries.
  • The delegations also discussed a draft enabling MOU to be signed by Bangladesh, India and Nepal for implementation of the BBIN MVA by the three countries, bearing in mind the consent provided by the Royal Government of Bhutan for the entry into force of the MVA among Bangladesh, India and Nepal, without obligation to Bhutan, pending the completion by Bhutan of its internal procedures for ratification of the BBIN MVA. The delegations of Bangladesh, India and Nepal agreed to consider expediting the finalization of this MoU, expressing gratitude to Bhutan for offering its consent in this regard.
  • The meeting was held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere, with the delegations agreeing upon the need to expeditiously finalize the Passenger and Cargo Protocols for implementation of the BBIN MVA. The meeting agreed to endeavour to revert by May 2020 on the process of internal consultations by respective countries based on the discussions of the meeting.
New Delhi
February 08, 2020

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