Russia is seeking to establish a joint business council with Bangladesh to deepen trade and investment ties, with a formal announcement potentially coming at an intergovernmental commission meeting in Dhaka in early November.
The Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry has expressed interest in forming the Russia-Bangladesh Business Council and plans to organise a business forum in Moscow to connect companies from the two countries, Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexander Khozin said on Wednesday.
Khozin disclosed the plans during a meeting with Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Administrator Md Fazlul Hoque at the business body’s Gulshan office.
The proposed Moscow forum would include business-to-business meetings and other sessions based on the profiles of participating Bangladeshi businesses, according to the ambassador.
Hoque called for the two countries to diversify trade beyond ready-made garments, identifying pharmaceuticals, leather and leather goods, jute and jute products, ceramics and manpower as areas with potential in the Russian market.
Khozin said Russia’s health ministry was already reviewing procedural and legal issues related to importing generic medicines from Bangladesh.
He also pointed to demand for heavy footwear and leather goods suitable for Russia’s severe winter.
Russia has issued visas to about 3,000 Bangladeshi workers in recent months as employment opportunities emerged in agriculture, fisheries, shipbuilding and services, the ambassador said.
The meeting also discussed progress on the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
Khozin said about 4,000 Russian specialists and engineers were working to resolve technical issues at the project, with efforts under way to supply the first 300 megawatts of electricity to the national grid by next month.
In a separate meeting on Wednesday, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dharmapala Weerakkody invited an FBCCI-led business delegation to attend Sri Lanka Expo 2027 in Colombo from 14 to 17 January next year.
Hoque responded positively to the proposal to send a business delegation to the exhibition.
FBCCI Secretary General Md Alamgir and officials from the Russian Embassy and Sri Lankan High Commission were also present at the respective meetings.
