Dhaka, June 6 (AHN) Turkey and Bangladesh continue to deepen engagement with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday calling on Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in Dhaka to explore ways of expanding bilateral cooperation across several sectors.

Sharing details of the meeting, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) posted on X: "Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan paid a courtesy call on BNP Chairman and Honorable Prime Minister Tarique Rahman at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaon, Dhaka, today. The meeting focused on strengthening Bangladesh-Turkey bilateral relations, expanding trade and investment, and discussing issues of mutual interest."

According to the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during the meeting, both leaders agreed to hold annual foreign office consultations at the level of foreign ministers. It was also decided that annual 2+2 consultations will be held involving the foreign and defence ministers of both sides.

The development comes amid Bangladesh's shifting political alignments following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government, highlighting a stark pivot in Dhaka's realignment towards countries like Turkey and Pakistan.

On Friday, a delegation from the National Citizen Party (NCP), led by convener Nahid Islam, also held a meeting with Fidan in Dhaka.

Following the meeting, Nahid took to X and posted, "Foreign Minister Fidan congratulated the NCP leadership for their pivotal role in the July Revolution, which led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government.”

Continuing with his engagements in Dhaka, the Turkish Foreign Minister also met a six-member delegation led by Shafiqur Rahman, the chief of the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami.

Sharing details of the meeting on its social media platform X, Jamaat said, “Discussions focused on various issues of mutual interest, particularly expanding cooperation in the fields of industry, trade, education, healthcare, and defense.”

On Friday, Fidan reaffirmed Ankara’s commitment to deepen ties with Bangladesh, particularly in the defence sector, during a meeting with Bangladesh Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman.

Fidan arrived in Dhaka on Thursday night on a three-day official visit and also visited a Rohingya camp with Khalilur on Friday.

According to the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Fidan visited the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar and observed the activities of Turkish agencies, including TIKA, AFAD, Turkish Red Crescent, Turkiye Diyanet Foundation, and other Turkish institutions, along with the services provided by the Turkey-Bangladesh Hospital operated by the Turkish Ministry of Health.

Worried about the country's alleged tacit alignment with extremist networks in parts of South Asia, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, several observers have recently cautioned that Turkey is not merely an external stakeholder in the region but a power with ideological motivations and expanding military links that could complicate regional stability.