BanglaBhoot
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Finalization of a deal with Moscow for buying its military hardware worth about $1 billion would be high on the agenda of prime minister Sheikh Hasina during her four-day visit to the Russian Federation set to begin on January 14, officials said.
As the deal could not be finalized due to differences on the rate of interest
on the suppliers credit with which Dhaka would buy the military hardware, the negotiators left the matter to the Bangladesh prime minister and Russian president Vladimir Putin to sort the issue out, they said.
Bangladesh would have to count interest at high rate to repay the suppliers credit for Russian arms.
Bangladesh negotiation team led by Major General Abdul Matin of the Armed Forces Division visited Moscow last week to get down to nitty-gritty of the biggest arms deal between the two countries.
The negotiations between the two sides are stuck over interest rate of the suppliers credit with Moscow demanding over four per cent and Dhaka asking to lower it to three per cent.
Putin and Hasina are expected to ink the deal in Moscow during her visit to Russia spanning January 14 and 17.
Finance Ministry officials are objecting to four per cent interest rate on the suppliers credit and they called its too high.
They favour lowering the lending rate to three per cent by Moscow.
For Bangladesh arms purchase from Russia is nothing new, foreign minister Dipu Moni told New Age Monday.
We buy arms not only from Russia but also from China and other countries, she said.
Dhaka also requested Moscow to increase the credit to $1 billion from $850 million, officials said.
Bangladesh wants to repayment the credit in 18 years, but Moscow insists on a 10-year repayment period, they said.
If the deal is signed, Rosoboronexport, the sate-owned Russian arms supplier, would supply the defense equipment including fighter training planes which can be converted to jet fighters.
Anti-tank missiles would be among the supplies.
Four other deals including the financing a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh and its information centre in Dhaka are also expected to be signed during Hasinas Moscow visit.
Her Moscow visit would speed up the setting up of Bangladeshs first nuclear power plant at Rooppur in Pabna, said state-minister for science and technology Yeafesh Osman.
Russia offered $500 million in credit for technical studies for setting up the Ruppur nuclear power plant with a capacity to generate 2,000MW of electricity.
The deal await sorting out the differences between the two sides on the rate of interest with Moscow asking for over four per cent and Dhaka at three per cent.
Dhaka and Moscow are expected to sign half a dozen memorandums of understanding during Hasinas visit to facilitate wheat trade, cooperation in health care and medical science, cooperation between state-owned energy mining companies and cultural exchanges.
Purchase of arms high on agenda
As the deal could not be finalized due to differences on the rate of interest
on the suppliers credit with which Dhaka would buy the military hardware, the negotiators left the matter to the Bangladesh prime minister and Russian president Vladimir Putin to sort the issue out, they said.
Bangladesh would have to count interest at high rate to repay the suppliers credit for Russian arms.
Bangladesh negotiation team led by Major General Abdul Matin of the Armed Forces Division visited Moscow last week to get down to nitty-gritty of the biggest arms deal between the two countries.
The negotiations between the two sides are stuck over interest rate of the suppliers credit with Moscow demanding over four per cent and Dhaka asking to lower it to three per cent.
Putin and Hasina are expected to ink the deal in Moscow during her visit to Russia spanning January 14 and 17.
Finance Ministry officials are objecting to four per cent interest rate on the suppliers credit and they called its too high.
They favour lowering the lending rate to three per cent by Moscow.
For Bangladesh arms purchase from Russia is nothing new, foreign minister Dipu Moni told New Age Monday.
We buy arms not only from Russia but also from China and other countries, she said.
Dhaka also requested Moscow to increase the credit to $1 billion from $850 million, officials said.
Bangladesh wants to repayment the credit in 18 years, but Moscow insists on a 10-year repayment period, they said.
If the deal is signed, Rosoboronexport, the sate-owned Russian arms supplier, would supply the defense equipment including fighter training planes which can be converted to jet fighters.
Anti-tank missiles would be among the supplies.
Four other deals including the financing a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh and its information centre in Dhaka are also expected to be signed during Hasinas Moscow visit.
Her Moscow visit would speed up the setting up of Bangladeshs first nuclear power plant at Rooppur in Pabna, said state-minister for science and technology Yeafesh Osman.
Russia offered $500 million in credit for technical studies for setting up the Ruppur nuclear power plant with a capacity to generate 2,000MW of electricity.
The deal await sorting out the differences between the two sides on the rate of interest with Moscow asking for over four per cent and Dhaka at three per cent.
Dhaka and Moscow are expected to sign half a dozen memorandums of understanding during Hasinas visit to facilitate wheat trade, cooperation in health care and medical science, cooperation between state-owned energy mining companies and cultural exchanges.
Purchase of arms high on agenda
