17th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting

17th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting

Part of: GS Prelims and GS – II – International Relations 

In news

• 17th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting was held virtually.
• India remains committed to further building the momentum of regional cooperation under the BIMSTEC framework. 

Key takeaways 

• BIMSTEC Convention on Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organized Crime and illicit Drug Trafficking has come into force in March 2021.
• Also, BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters has been finalized for signing at the fifth BIMSTEC Summit.
• These Conventions will provide a robust legal basis to further strengthen our cooperation in this sector.
• BIMSTEC Centre for Weather and Climate, being hosted in India, is fully functional with state of the art facilities to provide Disaster Early Warning.

Important value additions 

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) 

• It is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the areas of the Bay of Bengal.
• This organization came into being in 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
• Member States: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand.