Dhaka [Bangladesh], August 25 : Bangladesh has asked Pakistan to apologise for the 1971 genocide. Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain raised this point to Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar during a bilateral meeting held in Dhaka on Sunday.
"Regarding the long outstanding historic issues including a formal official apology for the genocide committed by Pakistan in 1971, division of assets, transfer of foreign aid that was meant for the cyclone victim of 1970, repatriation of stranded Pakistanis, Bangladesh called for their early resolution in order to establish a solid foundation for enduring and forward-looking bilateral relations", Bangladesh Foreign Ministry said in a statement after the meeting.
Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister was on a two-day official visit to Bangladesh from 23 to 24 August at the invitation of his Bangladeshi counterpart.
In the afternoon Dar called on Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.
Bangladesh and Pakistan have signed one bilateral deal, 5 MoUs. The signing ceremony took place on Sunday afternoon in Dhaka, attended by Bangladesh's Foreign Affairs Adviser, Md Touhid Hossain and Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar.
The agreement includes the waiver of visas for holders of government and diplomatic passports from both countries.
The MoUs signed cover the following areas, namely, formation of a joint working group on Trade between the two countries, cultural exchange, cooperation between the foreign service academies, collaboration between the state news agencies and cooperation between the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and Pakistan's Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI).
Earlier, Pakistan's Minister of Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and Bangladesh's Adviser for Commerce Sk Bashir Uddin held in-depth discussions in Dhaka on Thursday to advance economic cooperation, mutual investments and strengthen bilateral trade ties, officials said on Friday.