Bangladesh’s diplomatic influence in Asia grows

Bangladesh is one of only four countries in Asia which showed improvement in the Asia Power Index 2021, mainly due to a rise in its diplomatic influence.

The annual Asia Power Index, first launched by the Lowy Institute in 2018, ranks the relative power of states in Asia.

Bangladesh had an overall score of 9.4 out of 100 in the 2021 index released on Sunday, ranking 19th out of 26 countries for comprehensive power.

Even though Bangladesh's scores improved from last year, it lost its previous position to Brunei (18th).

The index categorises countries as Super powers (countries scoring above 70), Major powers (above 40), Middle powers (above 10), and Minor powers (below 10).

The US and China have been the only super powers in the region for the last four years, according to the report. 

India (4th) and Pakistan (15th) are currently the only South Asian countries labelled as "Middle powers", while Bangladesh (19th) and Nepal (25th) are regarded as "Minor powers".

The index seeks to capture how diverse qualities – military capability and defence networks, economic capability and relationships, diplomatic and cultural influence, resilience and future resources – enable countries to pursue favourable geopolitical outcomes within the Asia-Pacific region, and respond to external shocks. 

This year, Bangladesh made the most improvements in diplomatic influence, gaining 4.1 points, and in the defence network (+0.9 points) measures.

Diplomatic influence is measured in terms of diplomatic networks, involvement in multilateral institutions and clubs, and overall foreign policy and strategic ambition.

The report indicated that the country's participation and influence in multilateral forums and organisations have improved. Moreover, government leaders and foreign policy bureaucracies have raised their ability to advance the country's diplomatic interests.

Bangladesh has lost the most points in the resilience measure (fell by 0.6 points) reflecting a deterioration of the capacity to prevent real or potential threats.

The report further mentioned that the country does most of its trade within the European Union – 19.5% of Bangladesh's total trade volume – followed by China (15.3%), India (9.3%), and the US (8%).