After a gap of four years, the fifth edition of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation), Summit is being held on Wednesday. Established in 1997, BIMSTEC is a cooperative arrangement aimed at synchronising the ‘Look West’ policy of some countries of ASEAN with the ‘Look East/Act East’ policies of certain South Asian countries. It thus offers itself as an alternative regional arrangement to some South Asian countries to the SAARC, which continues to be unable to even meet.
Unlike other regional groups, BIMSTEC is a sector-driven cooperative organisation looking at seven sectors: science, technology and innovation; trade and investment; environment and climate change; agriculture and food security; security; people-to-people contacts; and connectivity. In the present context, two issues are worth looking at: trade and security.
Intra-regional trade in BIMSTEC is around $70 bn. That constitutes only 7% of the total global trade of its member-countries. This is far less compared to ASEAN’s $600 bn intra-regional trade (constituting 23% of its global trade). A Free Trade Agreement among BIMSTEC countries is a good option to enhance intra-regional trade volume. However, issues of trade patterns and complementarities remain hurdles.
BIMSTEC members already have either bilateral or regional FTAs in the vicinity, such as the ASEAN FTA involving Thailand and Myanmar; the ASEAN-India FTA; the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), involving Myanmar and Thailand; ASEAN-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership; South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) involving Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan; and the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) involving Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.
Some of the bilateral FTAs include India’s FTAs with Sri Lanka and Bhutan and a Treaty of Trade with Nepal. So, going by the web of FTAs touching almost all the member countries, a BIMSTEC FTA should be a smooth sail.
The member countries did indeed make it a priority since the beginning to enhance trade in goods and services, apart from investments. But progress has been slow. Although a Framework Agreement was signed in 2004 by establishing a Trade Negotiating Committee, the negotiations are still on. The principal hurdle has been differences over market access between the two big economies of BIMSTEC: India and Thailand. In 2016, the countries agreed to speed up the negotiations on at least two issues in the FTA: preferential treatment to Least Developed Countries, and push on relaxations in services and investments.
Security is another key sector of cooperation. Some of the common threats faced by BIMSTEC countries include terrorism, organised crime, drug trafficking, human trafficking, illegal migration, and radicalisation. A Joint Working Group (JWG) on Counterterrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) was established to deal with these threats in the Bay of Bengal region. Six sub-groups, each working on a specific aspect of CTTC cooperation, were formed to report to the JWG.
When it comes to legal frameworks on security cooperation, it is not disappointing. In 2009, the members signed the BIMSTEC Convention on Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organised Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking. Though awaiting ratification from all members, it provides “each [member-State] the widest possible measure of mutual assistance in the prevention, investigation, prosecution and suppression of such crimes.”
The BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, has been finalised but awaits signature. Yet another legal framework on the cards is the Convention on Human Trafficking, which requires serious attention. The BIMSTEC National Security Chiefs meetings has been in place since 2017 to give legs to the monitoring and implementation aspects of the legal frameworks on security.
Despite the presence of enormous human and natural resources, the huge potential of BIMSTEC remains untapped. Given the level of synergies and complementarities among the member states, it is viable to realise a Bay of Bengal Economic Community at some point.
Presently, BIMSTEC hovers around at political and bureaucratic levels. For wider acceptability and entrenchment, it is vital to take the grouping to the level of the people through track 1.5, track 2 and track 3 dialogues. The formation of the BIMSTEC Network of Policy Think Tanks (RC-BNPTT) for broader regional consultations on policy matters is a good move.
Having a charter on the lines of other regional groupings like ASEAN, SAARC, and the EU would provide much-needed standards. Outreach activities with the UN and other similar regional organisations like ASEAN for maximum benefit including “recognition, financial assistance, expert assistance, market access etc.” are worth exploring. At the same time, SAARC should not be forgotten and must be revived at some point.
(The writer is Director, Centre for East Asian Studies, Christ University,Bengaluru.He
earlier served at the National
Security Council Secretariat, PMO)