Bay of Hope

AFTER THREE postponements and the severe earthquake that shook Thailand and Myanmar, the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral, Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) scheduled its sixth summit in Bangkok for April 4, 2025. The decision to proceed with the summit underscored not only the resilience of the host city but also the enduring relevance of this year’s agenda—BIMSTEC: Prosperous, Resilient and Open. Leaders of the seven member states—India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal, and Bhutan—explored ways of infusing greater momentum into this regional organisation through various institutional and capacity-building measures. This was the first in-person gathering of the regional leaders after the fourth summit in Nepal in 2018. The fifth summit was conducted virtually in pandemic-ridden 2022. For India, the meeting was an opportunity to reaffirm its regional engagement amid an evolving geopolitical landscape in the Bay of Bengal.

The sixth summit built on a string of recent efforts to revitalise BIMSTEC, and its outcomes are critical for its member states. While the charter adopted in 2022 lent the organisation long-overdue institutional clarity, more functional changes are pending, of which some key ones were tabled at the summit. These include adopting the Rules of Procedure for Core BIMSTEC Mechanisms, adopting the report submitted by the BIMSTEC Eminent Persons Group, adopting the sixth summit declaration, and launching the BIMSTEC Bangkok Vision 2030, which will pave the way for future cooperation among the member countries. This was the first time BIMSTEC outlined its vision, addressing longstanding criticisms of its lack of a comprehensive action plan.

The Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation was also signed to boost cargo and passenger transport across the Bay of Bengal, enhancing trade and travel. The BIMSTEC leaders have already requested the initiation of a draft standard operating procedure per this Agreement for discussion in the Joint Shipping Committee. Additionally, it signed two MoUs with the Indian Ocean Rim Association and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, signalling the beginning of BIMSTEC forging partnerships with international and regional organisations. BIMSTEC is also in conversation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as there is significant potential for collaborative work, especially towards strengthening ties between South and Southeast Asia. It can learn substantially from ASEAN’s experience as a regional organisation, as the latter functions in geographical proximity, sharing an overlapping membership of Myanmar and Thailand.

The leaders also deliberated on finalisations of the concept note of the BIMSTEC Framework Agreement on Transit, Transshipment, and Movement of Vehicular Traffic; the draft BIMSTEC Motor Vehicle Agreement; and the draft BIMSTEC Guidelines for Maritime Component of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief. The long-awaited BIMSTEC Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the implementation of the Master Plan for Transport Connectivity, and deeper collaboration on climate resilience and maritime security were also key points of discussion, demanding a regional response. Notably, each of these initiatives aligns with India’s strategic priorities.

BIMSTEC, as the regional organisation devoted exclusively to the Bay of Bengal, provides India a natural platform for executing its Act East and Neighbourhood First policies, through which New Delhi seeks to strengthen ties with its eastern neighbourhood. The substantial and diverse array of its areas of cooperation offers India opportunities not only to collaborate with fellow member states across vital domains, fostering necessary confidence-building, but also to demonstrate its capabilities and play a constructive role in shaping regional initiatives. The latter fits well with India’s recent vision of MAHASAGAR or “Mutual and Holistic Advancement of Security and Growth Across Regions”, an elevation of its 2015 concept of SAGAR, or “Security and Growth for All in the Region”. BIMSTEC is also crucial for manifesting India’s vision of the Indo-Pacific, which has a distinct eastern thrust due to its focus on ‘ASEAN centrality’.

At the fifth summit meeting, BIMSTEC’s 14 sectors of cooperation were regrouped into seven comprehensive areas. Among these, India leads the BIMSTEC pillar on Security, which has three sub-sectors: Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime; Disaster Management; and Energy. In light of the growing strategic significance of the Bay of Bengal, these sub-sectors have witnessed significantly higher engagement in recent years, spanning the formation of respective joint working groups, conducting disaster preparedness exercises, and most recently, constructing the BIMSTEC Energy Centre. New Delhi is also spearheading the organisation’s initiative of inter-connecting its electricity grids to enhance energy security and green transition in the member states.

However, India needs to invest much more in BIMSTEC, especially due to changing dynamics in the neighbourhood. India’s relationship with Bangladesh, once considered its closest ally in South Asia, has drastically altered after the regime change in Dhaka last August. Ties are strained between New Delhi and the fledgling interim government now at the helm of affairs in Dhaka, led by Muhammad Yunus. The latter’s emphatic engagement with Pakistan and China (both bear strategic concerns for India), reported recurrent attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh, and the deposed former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s continued shelter in India in the face of an extradition plea, have created a tangled web of mistrust.

The situation is also tense in Myanmar, with ethnic armed organisations, particularly the Arakan Army, gaining ground against the military junta in the Rakhine and Chin states, bordering India’s Northeast. New Delhi has infrastructural investment in these states—the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project, which is currently in jeopardy owing to growing political instability. India faces the dilemma of engaging with the rebel groups for negotiations, contrary to its stance of dealing only with the government.

China’s growing influence in Bangladesh and Myanmar, as well as in other BIMSTEC member countries as a part of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), adds another layer of complexity to India’s neighbourhood dynamics. The Bay of Bengal is India’s primary area of interest, cardinal to its economy, security, connectivity, and foreign policy projections. While multilateralism cannot replace the criticality of bilateral partnerships, BIMSTEC offers New Delhi the unique scope of leveraging shared challenges and opportunities to retain its influence and shape the Bay’s regional architecture.

However, for BIMSTEC to function sustainably, there is a need for a convergence in the political will of its member states. This can only be assured if the existing regional initiatives reap tangible benefits through committed collaboration. India, for its part, must act accordingly.

ASEANBIMSTECgeographical proximityKaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Projectregional collaborationsregional trade