India and Bangladesh: Time to think beyond neighbourhood diplomacy

Countries do not build lasting relationships merely by aligning their political positions.

The relationship between India and Bangladesh has often been discussed through a rather narrow geopolitical lens. We speak of influence, strategic competition, security concerns, and the involvement of external powers. These are legitimate considerations, but in focusing so heavily on them, we sometimes overlook the most important question: What could India and Bangladesh achieve together if they began to see their relationship as a shared opportunity rather than a continuing exercise in strategic calculation?

Flags of India and Bangladesh (File Photo)

Geography has placed the two countries in an unusually interconnected position. History, culture, language, trade, rivers, and communities have created ties that cannot be adequately understood through conventional diplomatic frameworks. Yet geographical proximity, by itself, does not guarantee political trust. Nor does a shared history automatically translate into a shared vision for the future. That is precisely where the real work of diplomacy begins.

India-Bangladesh relations need a more forward-looking conversation, one that recognises Bangladesh not merely as India's neighbour, but as a country with its own ambitions, development priorities, and foreign policy choices. Equally, India must be understood not simply as a larger regional power but as a partner whose economic and strategic interests are closely connected to the stability and prosperity of its eastern neighbourhood.

This is where the idea of complex interdependence becomes particularly relevant. Countries do not build lasting relationships merely by aligning their political positions. They do so by creating multiple, mutually beneficial connections that make cooperation meaningful to both sides. For India and Bangladesh, these connections could be considerably more ambitious.

Consider the possibilities. Could cross-border electricity trade become part of a wider regional energy network? Could inland waterways and multimodal transport transform the economic geography of India's north-eastern states and Bangladesh? Could the Bay of Bengal become a space for collaborative maritime research, sustainable fisheries, climate resilience, and blue-economy initiatives? And could both countries work towards supply chains that create employment, strengthen manufacturing, and connect their economies to wider Asian markets? These are not simply infrastructure questions. They are questions about the kind of regional order both countries wish to help shape.

There is also a need to reconsider how we interpret Bangladesh's engagement with other international partners. Dhaka's relationships with China, Japan, India, and other countries reflect its own development and strategic priorities. Such diversification should not automatically be viewed as a challenge to India. In an increasingly interconnected world, strategic autonomy is an aspiration shared by states of different sizes. India, too, values the freedom to develop partnerships across competing geopolitical centres. Recognising this principle in Bangladesh's foreign policy would allow New Delhi to approach the relationship with greater confidence and maturity.

However, a genuinely forward-looking partnership cannot avoid difficult issues. Water-sharing, border management, trade barriers, and people-to-people mobility require sustained attention. The Ganges Water Sharing Treaty, due to expire in December 2026, presents an important opportunity to think beyond periodic negotiations and consider a more comprehensive approach to transboundary water governance. The climate crisis, river erosion, flooding, and the livelihoods of communities on both sides demand cooperation that is scientific, institutional, and long-term.

The relationship must become less dependent on the political circumstances of the moment. Governments change, domestic priorities evolve, and political narratives shift. Partnerships endure when they are supported by institutions, economic interests, academic exchanges, business communities, and ordinary citizens.

Perhaps we should begin asking a different set of questions. Can India and Bangladesh develop a partnership in which neither has to compromise its strategic autonomy? Can their shared geography become an economic advantage rather than a source of recurring friction? Can they build institutions that preserve cooperation even when political relations become complicated?

India and Bangladesh need to agree on everything to move forward. They need a shared understanding that their respective futures are connected, even when their immediate priorities differ. The success of neighbourhood diplomacy should not be measured by how much influence one country exercises over another. It should be measured by how much confidence, opportunity, and prosperity two neighbours can create together. For India and Bangladesh, that is not merely a diplomatic aspiration. It is a practical possibility worth pursuing.

(The views expressed are personal)

This article is authored by Kamakshi Wason, Global COO, Tillotoma Foundation.