Japan wants India back in its Bay of Bengal growth plan as Tarique Rahman heads to Tokyo

Japan is expected to press for India to be brought back into its Bay of Bengal Industrial Growth Belt when Bangladesh’s prime minister, Tarique Rahman, visits Tokyo next week, according to officials in Dhaka, a sign that Tokyo sees a fresh opening to stitch together its plans for the region after two years of strained ties between Dhaka and New Delhi.

The initiative, known as BIG-B, was launched by Japan in 2014 to promote industry and connectivity around the Bay of Bengal, starting with the Dhaka-Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar corridor. It rests on three pillars, industry and trade, energy and transport, and is built around projects such as the Japanese-funded Matarbari deep-sea port. In 2023 Japan proposed a broader Bay of Bengal-Northeast India Industrial Value Chain Initiative to tie Bangladesh more closely to India’s northeastern states.

That vision stalled after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government on 5 August 2024, which sent relations between Bangladesh and India into a rough patch.

“Japan has invested heavily in Northeast India. India, too, continues to engage with Bangladesh on cross-border connectivity projects aimed at facilitating the movement of goods between its northeastern states and the mainland. Both countries have an interest in connectivity that leads to the Bay of Bengal,” one Bangladeshi official said. “Now that the political situation has changed, Japan wants to revive its strategic vision for the region. BIG-B will feature in the upcoming highest-level talks.”

Why India matters to Tokyo

By February 2024, Japan had provided about 385 billion yen in development assistance to northeast India, much of it for roads and other connectivity, according to the Embassy of Japan in India. Dhaka and Tokyo, officials said, have kept the door open for India to join when conditions allow.

For New Delhi, a working link from the northeast through Bangladesh to a deep-water port on the Bay of Bengal would cut the long haul around the narrow Siliguri corridor, a goal that has driven Indian interest in Bangladeshi ports for years.

A bigger partnership

Tarique Rahman will be in Japan from 26 to 29 October at the invitation of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Officials involved in the preparations said the two sides are expected to raise their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership, a tier Japan currently shares with ASEAN, the Philippines, Vietnam and Laos. Japan’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday the visit should strengthen ties and coordination towards an updated vision of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific.

Dhaka is keeping its own counsel on Matarbari’s regional role. Asked about Japan’s idea of turning the port into a subregional hub, Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam said Bangladesh’s ports must first meet the country’s own needs. “If the port can handle more after meeting our demands, then we will think about it,” he said.

It is still unclear whether Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman will travel with the prime minister. “If his schedule matches, he will join,” Siam said.