India-Bangladesh ties ease with visa restart amid China concerns

AI Summary

India resumed tourist visa services for Bangladeshi nationals, signaling a thaw in strained ties between the two countries. Analysts note that the key challenge will be rebuilding trade relations amid Dhaka's growing Chinese investment near India's sensitive border region.

India’s decision to resume tourist visas for Bangladeshi nationals marks the clearest sign yet of a thaw in strained ties, but analysts say the deeper test will be whether trade links can be rebuilt while Dhaka courts Chinese investment near India’s sensitive eastern flank. India began accepting tourist visa applications from Bangladeshis on Sunday, nearly two years after services were suspended in the fallout from violent protests that forced former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina from...