Bangladesh armed forces watch!

All threads that are locked or marked for deletion will be moved to this forum. The topics will be cleared from this archive on the 1st and 16th of each month.
Post Reply
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

As the Dragon steps into our neighbourhood and starts arming the smaller SAARC nations, it behooves to keep a watch on what is going on in these countries as well. Bangladesh leads the list!
The Bay of Bengal Naval Arms Race
As Bangladesh and Myanmar build up their navies, India and China compete to supply equipment.

By Saurav Jha
December 30, 2016



In late November 2016, Bangladesh took delivery of two refurbished submarines from China, making the former the second Bay of Bengal (BoB) navy to acquire an undersea capability. This development takes place even as Myanmar recapitalizes its surface fleet sporting sonars supplied by India. Recent maritime boundary settlements, rather than obviating the need for naval capability accretion, seem to have enhanced it in the littorals of the resource-rich BoB. As such, the India-China contest for influence in the BoB has a decidedly naval edge to it, with both sides seeking to leverage capacity-building cooperation with countries in the region to secure access and a deep security relationship.

Bangladesh had actually sought to acquire its own submarine capability back in 2003, although that effort did not yield results due to internal political turmoil. The move to purchase submarines from abroad was revived in 2009, after naval tensions with Myanmar the previous year. In 2010, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced her government’s intention to develop the BN into a three-dimensional “deterrent” force, with a view to protecting the nation’s maritime resources and mostly coastal population. Similar statements have been made by Hasina on multiple occasions since then and her government is believed to be the key driver behind Bangladesh’s naval expansion.

While Bangladesh had initially looked to acquire brand-new submarines of a more contemporary design such as the Type 041 Yuan, which China reportedly offered for $250 million apiece, budgetary constraints meant that the BN had to ultimately settle for two used Type-035G Ming-class submarines instead. Financial issues probably also stopped the Bangladeshis from considering Russia’s offer to sell Kilo-class submarines. The two Type-035G boats ordered in 2013 for a sum of $203 million and now commissioned as BNS Nabajatra and Joyjatra, respectively, have typical Ming class features, with a submerged displacement of 2,110 tonnes, an overall length of 76 meters, beam of 7.6 m, hull draught of 5.1 m, and a top speed of 18 knots when submerged. Each boat has a complement of 47 sailors and 10 officers and sports eight 533 mm tubes that can deploy weapons such as Yu-3 and Yu-4 heavyweight torpedoes. A total of either 14 torpedoes or 32 naval mines can be carried by these boats. The two submarines have an integrated sonar and electronic warfare suite with Chinese derivatives of Western origin systems.

Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.
BNS Nabajatra and Joyjatra, though obsolete in terms of structural design, have a decent sensor fit, and have been deemed adequate by the BN not only for training and capacity-building roles but also for sea-denial potential against less capable adversaries such as the Myanmar Navy (MN). These submarines will be based in the newly constructed submarine base at Kutubdia Channel near Cox’s Bazaar. Bangladesh also has a plan to build a major naval base in the Rabanabad Channel in southwestern Bangladesh, which will have both submarine berthing as well as aviation facilities.

Even though Bangladesh settled its maritime boundaries with Myanmar in 2012 and India in 2014 via international arbitration, these awards probably reinforced its desire to build a deterrent navy, rather than dampening it. Post-arbitration, Bangladesh now has sovereign claim over an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) spanning 111,631 square kilometers, an area nearly equal to its landmass, which it feels the need to actively defend given that it isn’t particularly rich in land-based resources.

Bangladesh’s acquisition of an undersea capability also comes at a time of heightened tensions with Myanmar over the Rohingya issue and turmoil all along Myanmar’s Arakanese coastline. Besides the naval drive, Bangladesh is also building a new airbase close to its eastern neighbor, in addition to opening new military cantonments across its territory. Overall, Bangladesh’s military build-up is directed by the Bangladesh Military’s “Forces Goal 2030” comprehensive modernization plan introduced in 2009, which perhaps is reflective of how the country sees itself on the world stage. With a population of 170 million and a growing economy, Bangladesh has been positioning itself as a leader among the G77 group of developing countries and it should be noted that it is a top contributor to UN peacekeeping missions.

Helping Bangladesh raise its military profile in the naval realm is of course China, its single largest trading partner. For instance, earlier this year two 1,350 tonne Type 056 corvettes, BNS Shadhinota and BNS Prottoy, built by China Shipbuilding and Offshore International Company, joined the BN. Each ship is armed with 76 mm and 30 mm naval guns as well as C-802A anti-ship missiles (ASMs) and a FN-3000N surface-to-air missile system. Two more Type-056s are on order. Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s Khulna Shipyard is currently building six 648 tonne Durjoy-class patrol craft to add to the two already delivered to the BN by China’s Wuchang Shipyard. The Durjoy-class is considered a scaled down variant of the Type-056 design and is armed with the lighter C-704 ASM. The C-704 may also arm BN’s Padma-class patrol vessels, which are being built by the Khulna Shipyard with support from China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation. Hasina has also announced a plan to build warships in the Chittagong dry dock in future, once again with Chinese assistance. Besides the new build ships, Bangladesh had also acquired two ex-Jianghu-III Chinese frigates in 2014.

China until now has also been the leading collaborator in the Myanmar Navy’s bid to recapitalize its fleet, although this may change in the future. Though the MN’s new surface combatants are being built in the Sinmalaik Shipyard in Yangon, which was set up with Chinese assistance, the ships are being outfitted with weapons and sensors of diverse origin. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that MN has opted for Indian sonars for its principal surface combatants even as China is helping Bangladesh set up a submarine arm. MN’s new 3,000 ton Kyan Sittha-class frigates, of which two have already been commissioned and three more are planned, is equipped with a DRDO-BEL HMS-X hull-mounted sonar, which is an export version of the HUMSA-NG meant for major Indian Navy(IN) surface combatants. Kyan Sittha-class ships also use Indian supplied search radars even though they have to use a Chinese missile targeting radar since their main armament consists of C-802 AshMs. The single Aung Zeya-class frigate, which precedes the Kyan Sittha-class, carries the same Indian sensors as the latter, but instead of the C-802 uses Russian Kh-35 ASMs as its primary armament. In 2015, preliminary discussions were held between the visiting Myanmarese delegation and officials of India’s Goa Shipyard Limited for the possible supply of OPVs to Myanmar.

Even as Myanmar progressively turns toward India for naval supplies, it has in the recent past also sought to address Indian concerns about the nature of its military ties with China. Back in 2013, IN and MN ships conducted a coordinated patrol between Myanmar’s Coco Island and India’s Landfall Island, perhaps in a bid to put to rest persistent Indian speculation about the island being used by the Chinese as a major signals intelligence (SIGINT) gathering facility. Myanmar has also invited India to overfly this island to examine the nature of the improvements taking place on it, such as an extended runway. With the inking of a pact for coordinated patrols earlier this year, it could be said that the Indian establishment is now sanguine that Myanmar is not likely to turn itself into a “second coast” for the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). India is now looking for work-arounds for sanctions to step up military supplies to Myanmar. For example, various Western components in the HMS-X sonars were indigenized specifically to enable their sale to Myanmar. A similar work-around for OPVs is being explored.

By making India a party to its naval modernization programs, agreeing to coordinated patrolling, and opening itself to Indian transit corridors such as the Sittwe Port built by India and ready to be commissioned, Myanmar has signaled that its “China card” is essentially designed to get the best techno-commercial deal for itself and is not necessarily reflective of a burgeoning military alliance with the PRC. Sri Lanka too seems to be giving this signal to India of late, by being lukewarm to Chinese requests for the use of Trincomalee harbor, which sits on the BoB and is much closer to the Indian coast than Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port, which China has helped develop. The Sri Lankan Navy is also beginning to see steady transfers of naval equipment from India.

India’s strategic community, despite warming ties characterized by the settlement of both land and maritime borders, is not quite sure about the nature of Bangladesh’s “China card,” however. Bangladeshi military literature continues to talk about using China to balance India, a country that surrounds it on three sides and with which it still has a major water-sharing dispute. The timing of Bangladesh’s acquisition of submarines also isn’t a particularly propitious one from an Indian naval perspective because of its source.

In the initial phases, Bangladesh’s new (old) submarines will have Chinese crews attached to them for training and familiarization purposes while plying in waters near India’s upcoming ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) bastions. Chinese personnel will also be heavily involved in setting up maintenance and operational support establishments at the Kutubdia submarine base, which would place them not too faraway from India’s Eastern Naval Command at Visakaphatnam or from INS Varsha, which is still under construction and will serve as the home base for India’s SSBNs. So in a sense, Bangladesh’s submarine pool will allow China to extend its sensor net into the BoB, besides enabling it to gather information that would prove useful for its own submarine operations.

Indeed, India will be even more concerned as to whether the Chinese naval presence would extend to being able to secure berthing facilities for their own submarines at Kutubdia. During the October visit of President Xi Jinping to Dhaka, a first by a Chinese president in 30 years, China promoted its relationship with Bangladesh from a “comprehensive partnership of cooperation” to a “strategic partnership,” while promising billions of dollars in infrastructure investment. In that sense, Bangladesh’s purchase of Chinese submarines while being promised major “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR) investments does bear more than a casual similarity to China’s sale of submarines to Pakistan and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

China’s outlets into the bays and seas that flank the Indian Peninsula will not really help reduce its “Malacca Dilemma,” whether in terms of being able to divert major traffic or securing overwatch over its sea lines of communication (SLOCs). What they can do, however, is complicate Indian naval planning by forcing Delhi to invest resources in areas such as the very northern reaches of the BoB. To be sure, Bangladesh’s new underwater boats by themselves do not pose much of a challenge to the IN. But even obsolete boats patrolling in areas that do not have a major naval base are a cause of concern and will mean the deployment of assets to areas that were basically Coast Guard territory earlier.

As such, the impetus to set up a major port at Sagar Island just off the coast of the Indian state of West Bengal and near the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) with Bangladesh may be gathering pace. Work is underway on providing road-rail connectivity to this port site from the mainland. The Indian military also intends to turn Sagar Island into a major C4ISR point, complete with support from a coastal missile battery and air defenses. The port itself, given its deep draught, will be able to dock most IN ships and serve as a replenishment base.

India has also been stepping up defense diplomacy with Bangladesh to ensure that the strategic overlay on China-Bangladesh economic relations remains manageable. A new defense agreement, which envisions Indian military sales to Bangladesh, extension of training facilities and joint exercises, and credible counterterrorism cooperation, was discussed during Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar’s late November 2016 visit to Dhaka. India is quite clearly trying to gauge the degree to which Bangladesh will accede to Chinese demands for access.

Some coordination between the India and the United States in this sphere may also be expected, given U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s remark during his September 2016 visit to New Delhi that “India and the U.S. see eye to eye on the Bay of Bengal.” India and the United States have already included Japan in their annual Malabar series of exercises held in the BoB (much to the chagrin of the Chinese) and India is also exploring the possibility of connecting with Japan to offer alternatives to OBOR style investments in the BoB littorals. Intelligence sharing of Chinese submarine movements in the Indo-Pacific is also on the Indo-U.S. agenda.

However even as diplomacy takes its course, India will now have to focus on increasing its own submarine strength. Parrikar himself has recently commented about the need to augment India’s submarine force structure, which is inadequate (despite IN Chief S.K. Lamba’s claim that “as far as deployment of PLA Navy ships and submarines are concerned, we keep a close eye and monitor their movement”). An early decision on a second line of conventional SSKs is expected soon. New Delhi intends to have two diesel-electric submarine lines humming into the 2020s (in addition to nuclear submarine construction) not just to recapitalize its underwater fleet but to also offer units for export. After all, India had to turn down a Myanmarese request to refurbish an old Foxtrot-class submarine for the MN in 2008 as that boat was too outdated and it is reported that Bangladesh had actually asked India for submarines before it placed orders for the Mings. India would certainly not want to give Bangladesh or Myanmar that excuse for turning to China for submarines in the 2020s.
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Bangladesh Rifles revolt

The Bangladesh Rifles revolt was a mutiny staged on 25 and 26 February 2009 in Dhaka by a section of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), a paramilitary force mainly tasked with guarding the borders of Bangladesh. The rebelling BDR soldiers took over the BDR headquarters in Pilkhana, killing the BDR Director-General and some army officers. They also fired on civilians, held many of their officers hostage, vandalized property and looted valuables. By the second day, unrest had spread to 12 other towns and cities.[6][7] The mutiny ended as the mutineers surrendered their arms and released the hostages[8] after a series of discussions and negotiations with the government.[9]

On 5 November 2013, Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Court sentenced 152 people to death and 159 to life imprisonment; another 235 people received sentences between three and ten years for their involvement in the mutiny. The court also acquitted 277 people who had been charged. The trials have been condemned as unfair mass trials without timely access to lawyers and "seem designed to satisfy a desire for cruel revenge", as charged by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights[10][11]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladesh_Rifles_revolt
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Provocation’: Bangladesh Buys Chinese Weapons to Irritate India, Experts Say © Flickr/ US Navy Page

ASIA & PACIFIC Bangladesh has purchased two diesel-electric submarines from China, sparking concerns in neighboring India. Is China attempting to encircle its southern neighbor? Canada, Bangladesh Foreign Ministers Set to Discuss Economic Ties in Ottawa India's eastern neighbor Bangladesh acquired two diesel-electric submarines from China on November 14. After they enter service in 2017, they will become the first and only submarines in the Bangladeshi navy. The move has raised questions, since Bangladesh is surrounded by Indian territories on three sides, sharing only a fraction of its border with Myanmar on the East. Defense News has interviewed experts on this issue. Bangladesh currently has no territorial or maritime claims, after all such disputes with India and Myanmar were settled in 2012 and 2014, respectively. "It is difficult to fathom why Bangladesh, which does not encounter any conventional maritime-military threat, has inducted submarines in its navy," said Gurpreet Khurana, an Indian Navy captain and executive director of the National Maritime Foundation. The diesel-electric submarines, capable of carrying torpedoes and mines, are believed to be strictly offensive weaponry, but with a navy so small, Bangladesh is far from capable of withstanding any serious naval conflict with India. According to Indian experts, one possible explanation is an act of provocation against Indian maritime security. "Submarines are offensive weapons of sea denial and their only use would be to pose a threat in being for India and to complicate the latter's maritime security paradigm," said Arun Prakash, a retired Indian Navy admiral and former service chief. © SPUTNIK/ SERGEY MAMONTOV Russia's Rosatom Opens Regional Center in Mumbai for India, Bangladesh Prakash also believes that the sale is a step in a long-standing Chinese policy of encircling India with client states who are dependent on China. Both India and China are significant weapon manufacturers, with India seeking to become one of the world's largest arms exporters, according to Bloomberg. Snatching regional markets from India is a logical act of competition. "It is just a good, economical deal Dhaka could not pass up," said Bharat Karnad, a research professor at the India-based think tank Centre for Policy Research. The Bangladesh Navy has a long history of purchasing naval weaponry from China. But the procurement of the submarines is likely to raise tensions in the region, said Swaran Singh, a professor for diplomacy and disarmament at Jawaharlal Nehru University in India. "[The] transfer of submarines means major upgradation of [Bangladesh and China] defense cooperation and would contribute to South Asia becoming a far more contested space infested with new weapon systems," he said. New Delhi must make attempts to secure the Bangladeshi market for domestic weapons manufacturers, according to Defense News. Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar is currently visiting Bangladesh to "upgrade bilateral defense cooperation." Despite that the two countries have no territorial dispute, they are yet to sign a water-sharing agreement, a significant stumbling block for New Delhi. If suggestions about provocations and "sea denial" functions of the submarines are correct, negotiations are about to become tougher. "Bangladesh is our neighbor, and its strategic importance cannot be understated in any way. Such events as the purchase of submarines by Bangladesh greatly enhances the mistrust between the countries and steps must be taken to reduce this gap and prevent Bangladesh from playing the China card repeatedly," said Probal Ghosh, a senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, an organization dedicated to leading political and policy discussions in India.

/
Read more: https://sputniknews.com/asia/2016112410 ... rovocation
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Assam: The Bangla hand


January 19, 2007 18:51 IST
The latest ULFA carnage in Assam has been diagnosed by top leaders like quack doctors, broadcasting panic, and their diagnosis is wide off the mark.
Ministers with foot-in-mouth disease rushed to comment about ISI-ULFA involvement and ascribed various silly reasons to befuddle the people. The media has quoted ULFA vice-president Pradip Gogoi as saying that the Government of India had invited trouble by terminating the dialogue process.

The wise men of India have, as usual, fired erratically. The ISI alone has not adopted ULFA. The collateral adopter is the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence of Bangladesh, DGFI.

It is necessary to understand the quantum dynamics of inter-relationship between the ISI, DGFI and Indian terrorist groups like ULFA.

The Bangladeshi intelligence machinery pivots around the DGFI, the Directorate General of National Security Intelligence (whose chief was sacked on January 15) and Military Intelligence.

The Bangladesh Threat

The DGFI, modeled after the ISI by then Bangladesh leader General Zia-ur Rahman in 1977, operates from its headquarters located at the BNS Haji Mohsin naval base, Jahangir Gate, a little south of Tashdique, home of the Bangladesh army chief. It has zonal offices in every district of Bangladesh.

Major General Sadiq Hussain Rumi is the present chief of the DGFI; Brigadier Azam Mir serves as his chief deputy. The agency is staffed by military personnel. Its command and control are regulated by the army chief, though the last Bangladesh National Party government won over large number of DGFI top guns through Brigadier Mir.

Mir is the son of Golam Azam, the former Jamait-e-Islami chief, who collaborated with Pakistan in carrying out the 1971 genocide.

The 1971 War, 35 Years On

The agency is divided into 12 bureaus, each handling subject and territory desks. The India division is headed by a colonel.

In India's neighbourhood, Bureau III handles Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka, though there is a separate Bureau for the SAARC countries. These officers report to the chief of the South Asia division of the agency.

The India desk has four distinct sections, which handle the North Eastern states, West Bengal, the rest of India and Muslim affairs in India.

In 2000 a new Bureau X was started to oversee the activities of domestic and international jihadi tanzeems, or local level outfits. Bureau X also plans and executes subversive operations in India.

A part of the Bureau known as the Dawa section handles Islamic NGOs and supervises internal and external money flow to these organisations.

Like the ISI, the DGFI has also an Inter Services Public Relations division, which works as the public face for the Bangladesh army.


Bangladeshi military and civilian intelligence officers were initially trained by the ISI. Some special units of the DGFI were trained along with ISI operatives at the Harvey Point Defence Testing Activity, a high-security compound in a quiet corner of a marshland near Hertford, North Carolina, USA. The facility, officially owned by the Pentagon, serve as the CIA's secret commando training base since 1961.

Such specially trained corps of DGFI officers initially trained some Harkat ul-Jihad-i-Islami and Jamait-ul Mujahideen top rankers. Bangla Bhai -- a Bangladeshi terrorist, who was captured and sentenced to death last year -- was originally designed by the DGFI for combating the Communist Party of Bangladesh, Janajuddha and Purba Banglar Sarbahara Party (both Naxalite outfits).

The DGFI has achieved excellent penetration amongst the Indian intelligentsia, academia, print and electronic media, political parties, business community and certain minority organisations and institutions. The allegation that the DGFI achieved penetration in the National Security Advisory Board cannot be shrugged off.

The ISI and DGFI often jointly operate inside India. Taking advantage of Pakistan's 'theopolitical' hegemony on vast sections of Bangladeshi people, specially the Afghan jihad veterans and other tanzeems, the ISI continue to operate against Indian targets in the Northeast. Nepal and Sri Lanka-based ISI outfits generally target the Indian heartland and the peninsular tracts.


The DGFI, besides handling joint ventures with the ISI, conducts 'loner operations' against India. The DGFI supports the Achik National Volunteer Council and Hynniewtrep Achik Liberation Council of Meghalaya, the National Democratic Front of Bodoland, the Kamtapuri Liberation Organisation in West Bengal, the Dima Halam Daoga and the United Peoples Democratic Solidarity of Assam.

In Manipur, the DGFI's main tools are the separatist United National Liberation Front, the People's Liberation Army, PREPAK, the People's United Liberation Front, the United Islamic Revolutionary Army, the North East Minority Front and the Indigenous People's Revolutionary Alliance.

Bangladesh: The next terror frontier?

In Assam, besides ULFA, the DGFI's main clients are the Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam, United Liberation Front of Barak Valley, Muslim United Liberation Front of Assam, United Liberation Militia of Assam, Islamic Sevak Sangh, United Muslim Liberation Front of Assam and Revolutionary Muslim Commandos etc.

Besides running classical intelligence operations the DGFI has sponsored Bangladeshi jihadi tanzeems to establish cells and modules in Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, Manipur, Dimapur and the Tezpur foothills areas of Nagaland, West Bengal, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

These cells and modules are set up in areas inhabited by Bangladeshis.

Indian intelligence agencies and others are aware that the DGFI played significant roles in the January 22, 2002 attack on the US consulate in Kolkata, the New Delhi bomb blasts on October 29, 2005, the Varanasi blasts and the Mumbai train blasts. These were ISI and DGFI joint operations.

There are indications that a serving major of the DGFI's special operations cell crossed over to India with valid documents about 10 days before the Delhi blasts and spent three days in Kolkata. About six days before the incident, he was noticed at a guesthouse in Delhi with an undercover diplomat from the Pakistan high commission.

After he returned to Kolkata and left for Dhaka, the DGFI's Kolkata station chief reached Delhi and met another Pakistani diplomat. He was present in Delhi on the day the serial blasts took place.


In the Varanasi serial blasts both Lashkar-e-Tayiba and Harkat ul-Jihad-i-Islami members took leading roles after they were housed and trained at Char Gopalnagar, Khulna, in Bangladesh and traveled to Varanasi through cell-points at Berhampur in West Bengal Bhagalpur and Bare in Bihar.

There is supporting information that an undercover officer of the ISI at Dhaka and a captain of the DGFI special operations cell visited Isurdi in Bangladesh to contact Harkat ul-Jihad-i-Islami area commander Barkatul Rahman Bablu. He was supposed to be the liaison man between the agencies and the tanzeem members responsible for the Varanasi incident.

The story of ISI and DGFI collaboration is thus of epic proportions. However, in the context of the latest carnage in Tinsukia, Dhemaji and Dibrugarh there is reliable information that this was a joint operation by the ULFA and DGFI.

Around December 28, top ULFA leaders and DGFI officials met at a safe house in Dhaka, and an operational task was charted out to create serious disruptions in Assam and in Siliguri to divert Indian attention from the election impasse in Bangladesh.

About 10 trained DGFI special task force members infiltrated into Assam and teamed up with ULFA cadres to carry out the mass killings. The infiltration of DGFI personnel into Assam is not a new development.

To bolster sagging moral of local ULFA cadres and to bamboozle the Assam people, such special DGFI operators help ULFA cadres carry out spectacular actions. Some DGFI commandos are housed by Assam-based Muslim jihadi groups.

The ISI input cannot be discounted, as ULFA leaders Paresh Barua and Arabinda Rajkhowa returned to Dhaka from a trip to Pakistan around December 20.

Rajkhowa, who is trying to acquire an apartment in London with assistance of Dhaka-based ISI operatives, was pressurised to carry out the recent Assam task. Barua has reportedly bought apartments in Bangkok and London.

The story of DGFI and ISI motivation in jointly and independently operating against Indian targets from Bangladesh is a part of the 'unfinished agenda of the Partition of India.' But that is another story.

It is necessary for the Union and state governments to understand that after establishing 'theopolitical' hegemony in Bangladesh, Pakistan is now trying to gain joint 'geopolitical advantages' leading to the creation of a larger 'Bangistan' or 'Northeast Pakistan' as envisioned by Chaudhry Rahamat Ali in 1937 in his famous treatise 'Now or Never.'

Is there any one in India to pay adequate attention to the DGFI and Pakistan's 'theopolitical' allies in Bangladesh?

Maloy Krishna Dhar is a former joint director of the Intelligence Bureau and author of Open Secrets and Fulcrum of Evil-ISI, CIA, Al Qaeda Nexus. He is available at maloy_d@hotmail.com.

More reports from Bangladesh
http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/jan/19guest.htm
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

http://www.asthabharati.org/Dia_Oct%2009/Malo.htm
I have extensively written about the ISI. Many other intelligence experts and authors have also written about this one fourth soul of Pakistan. Some Pakistani authors have also commented on ISI interference in domestic affairs and its jihad against democracy. However, very little attention has been paid by Indian intelligence agencies and security experts about the intelligence edifices of Bangladesh especially the Directorate General of Force Intelligence (DGFI), the spy agency intricately dominated by the Army. It also controls the political destiny of Bangladesh and interferes in Indian’s security concerns.

Bangladesh intelligence machineries are pivoted around:
· The Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI),
· The Directorate General of National Security Intelligence
(DGNSI)
· Military Intelligence (MI)
· Intelligence units of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR)
· Intelligence units of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)
· Criminal Intelligence Department (CID)
· Presidential Security Force (PSF).

Our focus is on the DGFI, a cousin of the ISI. Before we get down to elaborate the ISI, DGFI and Jiahdi Tanzeem collaboration in spearheading jihadist terrorist actions in India, it is necessary to understand certain basics.

There is no need to panic about Bangladesh being branded as one of the exporters of Jihad to India, besides exporting people to India in a steady flow. Migration from Eastern Bengal to the more developed Western Bengal, Bihar and Assam had been a historic feature, which took a communal turn with imbalance in demographic feature in several Indian states and involvement of Bangladeshi intelligence agencies and nationals in executing terror actions in India. Export of Jihad is a new development. But the use of East Pakistan/Bangladesh soil by the Inter Services intelligence and its cousin, the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence, can be traced back to 1948, when Pakistan Intelligence bureau smuggled out A.Z. Phizo, the rebel Naga leaders from India by securing him inside a coffin. Insurgency in Indian Northeast and involvement of Pakistani and Bangladesh intelligence agencies are inseparable.

However, deep inside, the common people of Bangladesh are secular and left to the democratic elements, they would like to trim the fiery operations of the BDR, RAB, NSI etc and ask the DGFI to function as a simple foreign intelligence gathering agency and supplementing the Military Intelligence. Unfortunately for Bangladesh and India the secular forces were crippled, almost irretrievably, by the Pakistan loyalist Jamait-e-Islami and its tentacles, Pakistan oriented cardes of the Armed Forces and assassination of Bangabandhu Mujib, his Family members and most of the frontline freedom fighters. Bangladesh’s army coup was resourced by the ISI, the Pakistani State and the CIA. However, it may be noted that some Bangladeshi diaspora have started voicing opposition to the DGFI and army domination. A few political leaders have also joined the struggle in a low key manner. I would mention about a few at the end of this dissertation.

The proxy war operations against India by Pakistan IB and the ISI from East Pakistan had ceased temporarily after 1971 liberation war. However, the link was revived after President Zia-ur-Rahman, the self-proclaimed Father of the Nation, visited Pakistan in September 1977. Zia permitted the Bangla Jamait chief Ameer Ghulam Azam to return to Bangladesh and reopen his shop. The Jamait later became a political partner of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). It is also described by secular Bangladeshis as - Bangla Name Pakistan.

President Zia-ur-Rahman had the privilege of receiving in Dhaka two distinguished but low profile foreign visitors some time in late October 1977. one of them, Lt. General Ghulam Jillani Khan, the ISI chief and the architect of Afghan mujahideen war, was one time boss of Zia. The other visitor, who flew in a special flight from Bangkok, was Michael Hayden, the CIA Chief. Their discreet visit was followed by formation of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence as a part of Military and external intelligence in November 1977.

In mid 1978 about twenty army officers assigned to the DGFI were deputed to the Camp Peary, “The Farm” training centre of the CIA in Virginia. Later in the same year another group was deputed to the Hartford training facility of the CIA in North Carolina. The DGFI also started sending its officers to the ISI training Centre in Islamabad.

Presently the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) is headed by Major General Golam Mohammed. Till 2007 Ghulam Azam’s son Brig Azam Mir was the most influential Deputy Director of the DGFI. He was removed by the present Army dominated so called caretaker Government after Mir’s hands were exposed for involvement in large scale of Bihari labour killings in Assam by the ULFA.

During the BNP regime, in which the Jamait-e-Islami was a partner, the DGFI was saturated with officers ideologically loyal to Pakistan and Jamait-e-Islami and dormant elements of the Muslim League, who took shelter under the wings of the BNP and Jatiya Oikya Party, a part of the coalition govt. Present Bureau chiefs, Brigadier General A.T. M. Amin and Brigadier General Fazlul Bari, are two of the most powerful movers-and-shakers of this current military regime headed by Army Chief General Moeen U. Ahmed. Political leaders in Bangladesh allege that General Moeen uses the DGFI for internal political manipulations. The 14 storied building of the DGFI is located near Kachukhet (arum field) Bazaar near the army GHQ. It is also known as Key Point Installation. With about 10,000 officers the DGFI is spread over 64 districts and over 50 Upa-Zillas. Besides Dhaka, its large presence has been observed in Rajshahi, Jessore, Chattagram, Sylhet and Mymensingh. In internal matters the DGFI started open interference from the time of General Zia and it was intensified by General Ershad. General Zia is considered as the father of Islamisation of Bangladesh. His father, a chemist in pre-partition Calcutta, was a prominent Muslim League leader. His Muslim League chromosomes had the better of his Bengali nationalism that had promoted him to rise in protest against Pakistani genocide. General Ershad consolidated the Islamisation process and allowed the Jamait and other Islamist organisations and gave a free hand to the DGFI to collaborate with the ISI for operations in India’s Northeast.

Two DGFI heads before Golam Mohammad, Major General ASM Nazrul Islam and Major General Sadiq Hasan Rumi played important roles in establishing firm relationship with the Northeast insurgent groups and accommodating Pakistani Jihadi groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jais-e-Mohammad, Hijbut Tehrir etc. the Pakistan branch of the Harkatal-ul Jihad al Islami was allowed to train and motivate the Bangladesh branch of the HuJI. These tanzeems were used for Joint and Loner operations inside India under guidance of the ISI’s Dhaka station and the DGFI.

The DGFI is mostly staffed by military personnel with attached field units and detachments in the Bangladesh Rifles, which are equivalent to the Border Rangers of Pakistan, and to some extent, it follows the training and functional pattern of the Indian Border Security Force. The DGFI maintains intelligence unit components in the RAB, who normally liaise with the insurgents and terrorist groups in India.

The agency is divided into twelve Bureaus, each one handling subject and territory desks. Back in November 2005 Colonel Shafiq was the bureau in-charge of India Division. In recent months, Colonel Rabiur Islam has replaced him. In India’s neighbourhood, Bureau 3 handles Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka, through there is a separate Bureau for the SAARC countries. These officers report to the chief of the South Asia Division of the agency. The India desk has four distinct sections, which handle North Eastern states, West Bengal, rest of India and Muslim affairs in India. In 2002, a new Bureau X was started for overseeing activities of the internal and international Jihadi Tanzeems. Knowledge sources in Bangladesh opine that this particular Bureau also plans and gets executed subversive operations in India. A part of the Bureau, known as Dawa Section, handles Islamic NGOs, zaqat matters and supervises internal and external money flow to these organisations. Like the ISI, the DGFI has also an ISPR division, which works as the public face for Pakistan Army.

As mentioned the officer corps of the DGFI and personnel of the NSI have been extensively trained in Pakistan and the CIA and the M16 have also imparted occasional trainings. There exist special arrangements with Pakistan for training of Bangladeshi military and civilian intelligence officers by the Inter Services Intelligence of Pakistan. The special units of the DGFI are also required to undergo CIA type commando training. Most of them are expert in handling explosives, sophisticated weapons and other black arts of intelligence trade.

Officers of the DGFI and occasionally NSI are assigned cover postings to diplomatic missions in countries considered important for strategic intelligence to Bangladesh. According to Indian intelligence departments, there are about 9 Bangladeshi cover intelligence operations in its Delhi and Kolkata missions.

With personal knowledge and knowledge borrowed from institutions it can be safely asserted that the DGFI has excellent penetration in India, including numbers of penetrations amongst the intelligentsia, academia, print and Kolkata based electronic media (TV channels), political parties, business community and certain minority organisations and institutions and institutions. The allegation that the DGFI has achieved penetration in the National Security Advisory Board cannot be shrugged off. Top Indian agencies require hard examination of these affirmative statements.

Besides the DGFI and NSI, intelligence units exist in the BDR and RAB. While the BDR generates shallow trans-border intelligence, the RAB is tasked to generate intelligence on the Communist and Maoist (santrasbadi) organisations and several Indian terrorist groups operating from Bangladesh soil. The RAB is better known for ‘cross fire’ killings of suspected ‘santrasbadi’ euphemism for groups operating against the BNP alliance. Both the BDR report to home Department but the DGFI is mandatorily kept informed.

To understand the growth and stranglehold of the DGFI and related Islamist groups on secular Bangla Muslim psyche, a little diversion to past history is necessary. Pakistan ideology was conceived in Punjabi and United Province’s Muslim minds, but the political movement was spearheaded by a section of Urdu speaking Muslims; a handful of Bengali speaking Ashraf and most other Ajlaf Muslims were mobilized by the ulama and a few Muslim landloard. Economic clashes against Hindu landlords and business and Bengali Hindu dominance in the services had strengthened the separatist tendency.

Nationalism had dawned on Bengali Muslims much earlier than the Aligarh brand renaissance was spearheaded by Sir Sayyid Ahmad, a close associate of the British rulers. Alongside Hindu renaissance in Bengal, Muslim renaissance also started through vernacular media, association with Hindu elite and faster access to educational institutions. Both urban and rural Bengali Muslims were responsible for spearheading secular, linguistic, and cultural nationalism. However, the Urban based section of the Urdu speaking Muslim Ashrafs were influenced by the Upper and Northeast Indian Muslims who, from the beginning stuck to the historic belief of separatism and the need for separate Muslim national identity. In present Bangladesh too these two distinct lines of division are clearly visible.

To make the analysis brief Pakistan had never reconciled with the break up of its territorial integrity and defeat of religion based Two Nation theory. Sooner than latter, it piloted a conspiracy to eliminate the top freedom fighters and succeeded in giving rebirth to the Islamist forces. After the Afghan saga and emergence of Islamic international jihad, Pakistan regained firm foothold in Bangladesh. Acute Islamic fundamentalism and communalism are again threatening the gasping minority that believe in secular concepts. Bangladesh is emerging as the backup replica of Islamist Pakistan.

While the Jamait-e-Islami was revived by Zia-ur-Rahman, its student wing and former Ansar and Badr loyalists rallied around Islamic Chhatra Shibir (student group) with deep connectivity with Islamic Students Organisation of Pakistan and the International Islamic Students Federation. However, proliferation in Islamist jihadi Tanzeems was intensified after the CIA, ISI, DGFI jointly recruited over 30,000 Bengali and about 5000 Rohingiya (Arakanese Muslims) for the Afghan jihad, They were flown or shipped to Pakistan and were trained in ISI managed camps in Peshawar, Quetta, Chaman and later in certain mujahideen run training facilities inside Afghanistan. It may be noted that most of these Bengali recruits were attached to the Hizb-e-Islami group of Gulbuddin Hikmetyar, an ISI stooge, close to General Zia-ul-Haq.

About 8000 remnants of the highly trained Bengali jihadis returned to Bangladesh around 1989-90 along with unaccounted number of Arab Al Qaeda fighters. Bangladesh government headed by Begum Zia denied existence of Al Qaeda members in Bangladesh, but maintained mysterious silence about the Afghan veterans. On return from Pakistan, some even from Bosnia, Kosovo and far off Chechnya, these jihadis fanned out to interior districts and gradually started establishing shop in the form of masjids and madrasas.

There are about 32 listed Islamist terrorist groups in Bangladesh. However, for our purpose brief study of the following is sufficient. I have discussed this in details in my book Fulcrum of Evil-ISI-CIA-Al Queda Nexus. These jihadi organisations are used by the DGFI and the ISI for carrying out jihadi activities in India. Recent incidents of killing of 7 armed HUJI militants infiltrating through Barpeta areas of Assam and serial explosions in Agartala indicate that besides being involved in other parts of India the DGFI supported HUJI and other groups are activating the Northeastern part of the country as well.

The main Bangladesh based Tanzeems are: Jamait-e-Islami (JeI), Islami Chhatra Shibir, Islami Oikyo Jote (IOJ), Harkat-ul-Jihad-Islami (HUJI) The Jihad Movement of Bangladesh, Arakan Rohingya National Orgainsation (ARNO), Rohingya Organisation (RSO) Jagrato Muslim Janata (JMJ), Hijbut Tehrir, Allhar Dal (Party of Allah), Jamait ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (Bangla Bhai), Shahadat-i-Alam-al-Hiqma, Tabilighi Jammat Bangladesh, Ahl-e-Hadis Movement (Hadith) Bangladesh and Sadhin Bangla Islamic Front etc.

Jamait-e-Islami was a political partner of the last BNP government (2002-2007) during whose regime the jihadi fronts escalated their activities that included attack on the British High Commissioner, Sheikh Hasina and forty-nine serial bomb blasts all over Bangladesh in a single day. Very recently HuJI has also been registered as a political party, styled as Independent Democratic Party (IDP). It is a constant factor that most of these organisations have vast madrasa and mosque network all over Bangladesh which churn out jihadi warriors. These very tanzeems have been exploited by the ISI/DGFI sleuths for carrying out attacks in India. Some of the spectacular DGFI orchestrated attacks in partnership with the ISI would be detailed in paragraphs below.

The readers may like to see the ground location of some of the major jihadi tanzeems in Bangladesh:
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Continued....
Expanded forms of the abbreviations are: AD (Allhar Dal), HT (Hijbut Tehrir), HUJI (Harkat-ul-Jihad al Islam), and AQ BD (Al Qaeda-Bangladesh). For lack of space it had not been possible to show details of the locations and concentrations of other tanzeems. They are present in all the districts of Bangladesh.
*
The following operational aspects can be approached through brief analysis of the following:
· Mechanism of sabotage and subversion in India (Jihad),
· Operational tools and modalities of execution,
· DGFI’s loner operations,
· DGFI-ISI joint operations,
· Impact on India’s internal, external and strategic security.
· Motivation and objectives (including historiography) of the Islamist fundamentalist’s agenda and long-term vision against India.
Mechanisms for carrying out sabotage and subversive activities (insurgency, terrorism, jihad, communal actions) involve certain key tradecraft ingredients, which are not normally understood by the media, political class and general analysts. The victims react spontaneously out of pain and memory declassifies the incidents as life advances inevitably. These mechanics involve indoctrination, intensive training, establishment of secret apparatchiks and, support from foreign government/intelligence agencies and ideological fountainheads located in foreign soils.
These operations involve both Macro and Micro planning. The instances of Macro Planning by the ISI and the DGFI require some elaborations though solid instances:

1. In May 1969, a devastating explosion rocked Imphal town. The Manipur police revealed that some youths manufacturing firecrackers had accidentally caused the blast. Intelligence investigation brought out a different angle. Arambam Somorendra Singh had established the United Liberation Front of Manipur in 1964, after the broke away from Meitei State Committee and a faction of the Communist movement started by H. Irabot Singh. His deputies Oinam Sudhir and Naorekpam Biseswar had visited Pakistan in October 1968 to seek help from Pakistan for launching a Naga-type armed revolution in Manipur. Another group of three was sent in January 1969. The team was taken to Decca and was debriefed by Choudry Ghulam Hussain of the ISI, East Pakistan unit. The ISI initially tried to bring about a marriage of the UNLF with the Naga Federal Government. This was not acceptable to the Meiteis, as the slogan of Naga integration had gathered momentum. On return they started experimenting with IED fabrication. The first major venture misfired killing two activist. Police did not go into the depth and allowed the under ground network to flourish. However, the serious 1969 blast ignored as an accident later developed into full fledged armed insurgency.

2. The Varanasi bomb blasts of March 7, 2006 are a classical example of joint micro planning by the ISI and the DGFI. Police and intelligence officials have leaked details of the blasts, speculation about involvement of Lashkar-e-Qahar, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jais-e-Mohammad and HuJI of Bangladesh. Uttar Pradesh Police arrested Imam Waliullah (supposed to be a Jais follower) and six other allegedly belonging to Harkat-ul Jihad al Islami, Bangladesh. The group was reportedly working under directions from Mulana Asadullah, HuJI chief. Several probable reasons that motivated the ‘terrorists’ to mount attack on Varanasi were voiced: retaliation for arrest of a LeT activist in Varanasi in February 2006 and efforts to incite communal trouble. The matter of the fact is that no jihadi tanzeems in Pakistan and Bangladesh are allowed to operate in India on the basis of their own battle-order (ORBAT). In most cases, these are well-orchestrated and controlled operations by the ISI/DGFI, guided directly by an officer of the DGFI located in Kolkata. Indian agencies have not yet been able to trace the footsteps of ISI/DGFI planning in this dastardly attack.

External tools used by the DGFI/ISI evolve out of continuous Intelligence Estimate reports prepared by the JIM, JIX and JIN divisions of the ISI and India division of the DGFI. Each country prepares such estimates from its own strategic point of view. Convergence takes place at operational level. Collaboration between the two agencies and Loner operations depend on the objectives outlined by the higher commands in the agencies and ruling military coterie, mostly without consultations with the political masters, if they happen to be around.
The intelligence estimates pass through several stages:
1. Operational appreciation of the Intelligence Estimate of the targeted fault lines in India.
2. Political approval (in some cases as in Punjab and Assam) of the scheme of operation.
3. Finalisation of operational details by the concerned agency desk and selection of operations team.
4. identification of retired officers of the concerned agencies (in most cases) to work as buffer between the agency and the selected Tanzeem entrusted to execute the operation. This category is applicable to ‘lone operations target’ and ‘selected one time job’, like serial bomb blasts in Mumbai, attack on Ayodhya and Varanasi.
5. The same category has a variation: retired officers, businessmen having transactions in the target country and area, and leaders of the disaffected groups living outside the aimed operations area. For example, the ULFA had initially used a Bangladesh businessman to contact the ISI and DGFI in Dhaka. Later the leaders had frequented Pakistan to smoothen their transactional relationship. Earlier to this the ULFA had started with drawing sustenance from Kachin and Shan bases and later switched over to Bangladesh and Pakistan after the Shans and the Kachins joined the pro-democracy movement against the Myanmar government.
6. The religious congregations play a substantial role. Jammats like Jamait-e-Islami, Deobandi, Wahabi, Barelvi, Ahl-e-Hadith, Jamait al Salafi, Harkat-ul-Jihad al Islami and Tablighi Jammat have presence in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Protagonists of these jammats and some selected leaders, halqas, and Dawat-e-Islami Markazis (groups operating in qasbas, cluster of villages) also play significant roles in assisting the garlanded tanzeems across the subcontinent. In most cases, there is ideological convergence amongst the Salafi, Wahabi and Jamait-e-Islami and Ahl-e-Hadith protagonists. The SIMI and the Indian Mujahaideen are parts of this conglomerate. This ‘garlanding effect’ produces chain reactions and national boundaries are obliterated by the operating tanzeems. Master intelligence agencies guide them. Cells and modules of these groups (cell=1 to 3 persons; module=5 to 10 persons) are exploited for local safe housing, transaction of hardware and monetary resources, manufacturing of explosive etc.
For record it must be added that the Indian stream of Deoband do not support Jihad in the form of terror actions. Its counterparts in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan are actively involved in Jihad activities.
In case of ‘area operations’, these ‘garlanded’ fifth column elements work as important link chains with the internal forces of the insurgent groups. In cases of ‘Job specific’ operations these hubs chaperon the infiltrated agents of the ISI and DGFI nominated tanzeems, provide safe houses, arrange lines of communication, hawala transaction, surveillance of the target area, conducting dry runs and carrying out the assigned operation. After execution the local markazis and collaborators help the ‘guest performers’ to cross border and evaporate in Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan (in some cases J&K).

7. The markazis and cell and module members are gradually integrated with the tanzeems units of Pakistan and Bangladesh and various offshoots of AL Qaeda and Taliban brand Jihad Inc, which manage to set up own colonies (cells, modules) in areas dominated by favourable tanzeems. Foreign tanzeems cells often choose neutral locations to avoid suspicion. Neutral locations are normally headed by accomplished individuals (educated or underemployed),who have undergone ideological transformation by electronic propaganda (internet etc), perceived grievances of discrimination and infusion of jihadi ideology from the ambience of perceived collision of civilizations between Islam and non-Islamic forces. These aspects have been detailed in training manual of the Al Qaeda.

8. Whenever and wherever possible the local markazis and guest jihadis set up havens in open safe places amongst compatible population areas. In urban areas such population live in exclusive ghetto-type concentrated areas, which are not easily accessible to police and intelligence. Take the instance of Jamia Nagar Batla House have. There was no access to police and intelligence till the beans were spilled during interrogation of Abul Basir Azamgharia.

9. Frequently madrasas, maktabs, and mosques infiltrated by jihadi tanzeem elements are also used for sheltering and as launching bases. ISI and DGFI sponsored tanzeem members generally gravitate to Indian counterparts of their mother tanzeems. Madrasas and religious places owned and run by Ahl-e-Hadith in India are the normal and likely sheltering holes for Pakistani and Bangladeshi tanzeem members owing allegiance to Jamait Ahl-e-Hadith, Jamait-e-Islami, HuJI, JMB, LeT and Jash-e-Mohammad. For example, the Rahmani masjid (headed by Maulana Rahman) and madarssa in Delhi’s Azadpur area is known for its Salafi, Ahl-e-Hadith, and Jamait-e-Islami affiliation. Several other smaller mosques and madrasas in the NCR owe allegiance to this institute. Similarly, madrasas, and mosques dominated by Maulana Mukhtar Abbas Nadvi in Maharashtra are known as hub-centres of the same jammat conglomeration. Similar centres exist in several places in Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and other places.

10. It is not necessary for the ‘visiting terrorists’ to make a beeline for the designated mosques and madrasas. Their Tanzeem and intelligence agency’s handlers give them a blue print of sympathetic hubs, cells, and modules such cell could be in a busy market place near Bandra mosque, Antop Hill, Wadala Bangali Tola, Memon Wada Bazar, and Jakarta Masjid Street in Mumbai or Batla House, Sunlight Colony and Seelampur in Delhi. In most cases, tanzeems collaborators in India arrange safe houses and provide logistics support.

DGFI Loner Operations are important from India’s long-term internal and external security considerations. Wherever necessary these operations are conducted in collaboration with National Security Intelligence, MI, BDR and RAB field intelligence units.
The DGFI runs its independent operations in West Bengal, certain areas of Bihar, Jharkhand, Nepal Terai, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, and Tripura. These operations can be broadly classified into four categories:
1. Classical intelligence gathering for political, military and commercial purposes.
2. Creation of long-term intelligence assets amongst print and electronic media, academia, literati, culterati, key business interests and general opinion makers.
3. Establishing sphere of influence among Muslim ulama, institutes, political figures, disaffected groups and correlated tanzeems operating in ‘sat bon champa’ and Indian Bengal areas.
4. Assisting Indian insurgent and terrorist groups.

I wish to confine to the last two categories.
Besides formal visits through legal channels several Bangladeshi madaris and ulama affiliated to King Faisal University, Dhaka, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Darul Ishan University, Dhanmondi-Dhaka and Islamic Foundation, Dhaka visit mosques and madrasas in Muslim dominated areas in Assam, especially Tanjim-ul-Madaris at Hojai and Markazul Ma’arif Education & Research Centre. These informal contacts are frequent in madrasas and Islamic institutions in Barak valley. They also establish contact with several Muslim institutions in Manipur including People’s United Liberation Front, Darul Uloom, Rabita Madaris-e-Arabiya, and Madrasa Alia etc.
Unofficial movements and contacts of Bangladeshi madaris and ulama have been reported from places like Markazi Ahle Hadis Hind, Delhi, and Indian HQ of the Tablighi Jammat, Maddis-e-Azam Mission, Gujarat; Silsila Shahiya Asrariya Khanaq at Jamshedpur, Bhagalpur, Azamgarh and Mumbai.
Operations experts of the DGFI also patronize formal and informal movements of the Tablighi Jammat activists between the North eastern states, West Bengal, Nepal Terai and Bihar and Bangladesh. Such visits are used to locate and prime usable intelligence talents and talents who would promote the long-term ‘theopolitical interests of Bangladesh. Though touted as a non-political proselytizing body (born in India – 1927), Tablighi Jammat movement has assumed importance with branches in all the Muslim countries, and countries having sizeable Muslim population.
In Pakistan important leaders like Benzir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif, president Mohammad Rafique Tarar, and the former ISI chief Javed owed allegiance to the Tabilighi Jammat movement.

The DGFI’s loner operations involve disaffected Indian groups like Tripura Tribal Volunteer Force, Tripura national Liberation Front, Tripura Tribal Youth Force, (a splinter group of All Tripura Tribal Youth Force). The DGFI actively supports Achik National Volunteer Council and Hynniewtrep Achik Liberation Council of Meghalaya. However, the DGFI tries to handle the Meghalaya groups through the NSCN (IM) and ULFA, as the two big brothers of NE insurgent groups claim equal suzerainty on the Khasi-Garo and Jaintiya Hills. Besides the ULFA and the NDFB, the DGFI actively supports the Kamtapuri Liberation Organisation (West Bengal), Dima Halam Daoga, and United Peoples Democratic Solidarity of NC Hills, Assam.

Of the Manipur separatist groups the main tools of the DGFI are: United National Liberation Front, People’s Liberation Army, PREPAK, People’s United Liberation Front, United Islamic Revolutionary Army, North East Minority Front, Hmar People’s Convention-Democracy, and Indigenous People’s Revolutionary Alliance.

In Assam, besides the ULFA main clients of the DGFI are: The SIMI, Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam, United Liberation Front of Barak Valley, Muslim United Liberation Front of Assam (MULFA), United Liberation Militia of Assam, Islamic Sevak Sangh, United Muslim Liberation Front of Assam and Revolutionary Muslim Commandos etc.

West Bengal does not have any geographically localized separatist group except the SIMI and the KLO-Kamtapuri Liberation Organisation. However, intensive infiltration by Bangladesh nationals in at least 5 West Bengal districts has created a compatible demographic map. Several cells and modules of the SIMI exist alongside units of the HuJI, Bangla Bhai, Allhar Dal and JMB in the bordering districts, Kolkata and its industrial suburbs. These units facilitate infiltration by Pakistan trained terrorist, their safe housing, and transfer of explosive materials from Bangladesh to India and onward facilitation of personnel and materials to target areas to Indian heartland. There are several reports to indicate that Kolkata based DGFI based DGFI operations maintain liaison with these elements and guide their operational activities.

DGFI and ISI joint operations do not merit detailed discussion. Connectivity of the NSCN (IM), ULFA and NDFB etc with the ISI and DGFI has been amply highlighted by various authors.

ISI operatives in Bangladesh do not run independent camps for Indian terrorist groups. Some of these camps in Chittagong Hill Tracts (3), Sylhet (4), Netrokona (2), Tangail (2), Jamalpur (2) and Rangpur (2) are patronized by the ISI and some Islamic NGOs supported by Arab countries and fronted by HuJI, JMB, and Ahl-e-Hadith tanzeems. It may be remembered that except the Afghan Bureau the JIN and JIX run terrorist camps for Kashmiri youths under cover of Pakistani Jihadi tanzeems. The Afghan Bureau had conducted open camps under direct supervision and control of ISI officers.

Mission based ISI officers maintain liaison with the Bangladeshi tanzeems and some direct operational tasks are assigned to them. During last five years, only four instances of independent arms induction by the ISI through Bangladesh for Indian and Myanmar insurgents were reported. In one such case, (April 2006), the RAB had intercepted one consignment near Guimara in CHT adjacent to South Tripura border. The consignment meant for the NSCN (IM) was later released after Dhaka intervened.

Another common platform of operation involves the Rohingya rebels of Myanmar. Besides Ukhia the DGFI and the ISI run camps and training facilities for the Rohingya groups at Teknaf, Sonaichhari and Rejupara. In some of these camps Muslim separatists belonging to Barisan Nasional Pember-Basan Pattani, Pattani Islamic Mujahideen Movementand Pattani united Liberation Organization of southern Thailand are also imparted training. During the peak days of Afghan jihad these training facilities were used as transit based for the Filipino, Indonesian, and Malaysian jihadis recruited by the CIA.

The major areas of ISI and DGFI cooperation involve the following aspects of jihad inside India:
1. induction of trained LeT, JeM, HuM and HuJI jihadis from Pakistan and their safe housing with compatible Bangladeshi tanzeems cells.
2. Extensive training to Pakistan based terrorist on India-Bangladesh border for acquainting them with the terrain, people and their behavioural pattern.
3. Joint training with Bangladeshi jihadi talents for inculcating team spirit.
4. Identification of cells and modules in India for smooth passage to the target area, establishment of communication channel, preparation of retreat route.
5. Joint training in assembling of explosive devices to be used in a given operation.
Recent serial bomb blasts have proved that innumerable modules and cells have been established in India and the SIMI and newly floated Indian Mujahideen have been involved in these joint or longer jihadi ventures.

Similarly, the ISI and the DGFI scout out appropriate and motivated Indian tanzeem members with help from friendly cells and modules. In at least three cases, undercover ISI and DGFI officials were noticed contacting Indian tanzeems members belonging to SIMI, HuJI, Ahl-e-Hadith at places like Ajmer, Jaipur, Agra and Lucknow. Once chosen, these Indian tanzeem members are transported to Bangladesh and Pakistan through safe routes where they undergo tactical and motivational training for about three months. On return, these members are used for spawning new cells and modules in target areas. They later impart training in camps locally arranged by their master trainers. Some of the routes to Pakistan run through terrorist controlled routes in Kashmir and some chosen Kashmiri terrorists are used to activate these cells for carrying out selected operations.

Another aspect of joint operations includes funding of some of the Indian tanzeems through Islamic NGO based in Bangladesh. Some of the suspected NGOs are Proshika, International Voluntary Service, Bangladesh Unnayan Parishad, Akota Palli Samaj Unnayan Samity, Islamic Heritage, Dawa committees run by the Jamait-e-Islami and several other listed jihadi organizations. Such funds are liberally transferred to India purportedly for supporting poor students and enterprising unalamas. It is known that great quantity of such funds received from Arab NGOs and Pakistani sources are transferred to consolidate the separatist elements amongst Indian Muslims.

I would like to conclude these complicated technical aspects of joint ISI and GDFI operations by mentioning the tragic incidents of serial bomb blasts in Delhi on the eve of Deepavali festival in 2005.

There are plausible indicators to believe that Major Burhanuddin of the Special Operations Cell of the DGFI had crossed over to India with valid documents about ten days before the incident and spent three in days in Kolkata. About six days before the incidents, he was present in Delhi and was seen at a suspect guesthouse in Delhi with an undercover First Secretary of the Pakistan High Commission. Soon after he returned to Kolkata and exited for Dhaka. The Kolkata station chief chief of the DGFI S.A. Biswas traveled to Delhi and met another Pakistani diplomat. Biswas was present in Delhi on the day the serial blasts took place.

In the Varanasi serial blast incident both LeT and HuJI members with
the help from SIMI took leading roles after they were housed and training at Char Gopalnagar (Khulna) and traveled to Varanasi through cell-points at Behampur (WB), Bhagalpur and Bare (Bihar). They were housed at the Ahl-e-Hadith madrassa-mosque near Varanasi cantonment station and at Madanpura behind Gowdaulia market. There is supportable information that an undercover officer of the ISI at Dhaka and a Captain of the DGFI Special Operations Cell had visited Isurdi to contact the HuJI area commander Barkatul Rahman Bablu. He was supposed to be the liaison man between the spy agencies and the tanzeem members that perpetrated the Varanasi incident.
An analysis of the jihadist violent incidents in India outside Kashmir and the North- East, indicate that the ISI and the DGFI have worked out two well-defined corridors channels to infiltrate and exfiltrate their home based operators and Indian tanzeem collaborators. These corridors and pockets are likely to emerge as unbroken links of a Grand Plan to create jihadi tanzeems cells and modules all over India, carry out violent actions against targets assigned by Pakistan and Bangladesh, and finally demand other homelands for the Indian minorities.
Willy-nilly some caste based political and societal leaders are openly aiding and abetting these designs of Pakistan and Bangladesh simply for a few more votes. They even defend a known jihadi tanzeem like SIMI and describe sordid encounters at places like Jamia nagar as fake. Some of these leader finance even Hindu owned Urdu newspapers which openly publish pro-jihadist and secessionist views. It is surprising that Indian political structure has also been infected.

The basic fact remains that Islamisation of Bangladesh by Zia-ur-Rahman and DGFI collaboration with the ISI and the CIA in Afghan jihad had transformed the secular soul of Bangladesh considerably. Steve Schippert, US journalist revealed that out of the 2500 AI-Qaeda and Taliban jihadis arrested by Pakistan after 2001 war on Afghanistan by USA were released. Beside Algerians, Sudanese and Arabs this released contingent included Bangladeshi Talibans.

Abdulahdi Khalaf, Department of Sociology, Lund University, Sweden is working on a project to examine the success and subsequent fragmentation of the Afghan Jihad movement and its close connection to several simultaneous process: a) the growth of Islamism, b) the regional ramifications of the Cold War, and c) the emergence of Jihad as an alternative ‘new space for collective action’. As a trans-national movement, that has its roots in the Third World; it present some of the understudied aspects of globalisation processes.

The depth and of Islamisation of Bangladeshi Muslim can be inferred from the following excerpt. “While a great majority of the detainees on U.S. mainland are of Arab and Pakistan origin, the presence of a few Bangladeshis has been authenticated by reliable source. The American Taliban John Walker Lindh said in an interview that Afghanistan’s Mullah Omar’s bodyguards comprised of Bangladeshis also. In a CNN interview, Walker Lindh said two important languages spoken in al-Qaeda power center were Urdu and Bangali. Bangladesh born U.S. Navy Chaplain, Lt. Abu Hena M. Saiful Islam had join Task force at Guantanamo Bay more than a month ago. In a recent interview with an American news agency, Lt. Islam said his media of communication with the detainees at Camp X-Ray were Urdu and Bengali. It is quite probable that there could be a handful of Taliban or al-Qaeda detainees at the camp who are of Bangladesh descent.” Resurrection of Talibans in Bangladesh in the Face of Her Historical Burden-Faith Freedom.org, 15.02.2005.

According to US intelligence agencies, 8,000 members from different Bangladeshi orgnisations including the Freedom Party were trained in Libya in the early 1980s and 1990s. Sources said over 2000 Bangladeshi Jihadis were killed and 2000 wounded in battles in Afghanistan, Lebanon, and Palestine. When they returned from foreign frontiers a number of them set up madrasas as cover, mainly toeing the Qwami line, which is the more orthodox system of Islamic education and need no government registration. They chose the forests of the Chittagong Hill Tracts, mosques, and the Qwami madrasas mainly in the north to train their activists. They also set up their network in Dhaka, starting from Kamrangir-char, and later spreading to Karfrul, Adabar, Shekher Tek, Basila and Demra. “ Zayadul Ahsan, Daily Star, August 21,2005.

The story of jihad breeding and gradual marginalization of the secular process in Bangladesh security concern for India. The Al Qaeda and the Pakistani jihadi tanzeems aspire to convert Bangladesh as a platform for expansion of jihad amongst the eastern of India and in South East Asia countries.

From Indian point of view political stability, restoration of secular democracy and weakening of stranglehold of the jihadis, Pakistan and the pro-Pak army elements are desirable. While our diplomacy, trade and other bilateral relationship should take better shape, India has a big stake in assisting the Bangla authorities to combat jihadist forces through constructive cooperation. Strengthening of secular democratic forces in Bangladesh alone can thwart expansion of the Taliban, Al Qaeda and Pakistan brand of jihadist Islam in this part of Asia.
Article based on personal research. Since this column has limited space, inquisitive readers are recommended to read my contribution to the Penguin India published book-Frontier in Flames, edited by young Assamese writer Jaideep Saikia.
What Zia ul Haq did for Islam in Bangladesh, Zia ur Rehman did the same in Bangladesh, his black widow is upto no good as usual. SAARC was also Zia ur Rehman's brainchild.

WHen Modi visited Bangladesh some time ago, he sat down with her and read out the riot act to Khaleda Zia.
Last edited by Paul on 30 Dec 2016 11:25, edited 1 time in total.
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

The role of DGFI in infiltrating Rohingya Muslims to J&K in a joint ISI-DGFI operations is almost a certainty......
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Bangladesh Eyes China Arms
Bangladesh’s military is set to make a big purchase of Chinese tanks. China is happy to oblige in the strategic sale.

By Trefor Moss
June 30, 2011



China has again underlined its strategic influence in what India might once have considered its own backyard, with the announcement of the latest in a string of arms sales to Bangladesh.

Dhaka is procuring 44 Chinese MBT-2000s main battle tanks, Bangladeshi media have reported, for around $162 million. This represents a significant purchase for a country with a 2011 defence budget of $1.6 billion, and it’s the first time that Bangladesh has obtained newly assembled MBTs. The army currently has an inventory of around 200 older Chinese tanks, which have been upgraded with Beijing’s assistance to keep them in service. One of China’s other key regional allies, Pakistan, also operates the MBT-2000.

China isn’t the sole supplier of military equipment to Dhaka, which has also sourced military technology (most of it second hand) from Italy, Russia, South Korea, the UK and the United States in recent years, while announcing the purchase of two new army helicopters from French firm Eurocopter alongside the MBT purchase. But Beijing has established itself as Bangladesh’s go-to ally when it comes to military procurement, and stands to be the main beneficiary as Bangladesh attempts to refurbish its army, navy and air force in spite of budgetary constraints. China has supplied armoured personnel carriers, fighter aircraft and frigates to Bangladesh within the last couple of years.

Dhaka’s limited defence funds mean that arms sales have more strategic than economic value from China’s perspective. Beijing is already bankrolling the construction of a deep-water port at Sonadia, near Cox’s Bazar, where the Bangladeshi government is also constructing an advanced air base to help it protect its offshore interests in the Bay of Bengal. China is working on similar commercial port projects in Burma, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, in what has been widely interpreted as a robust strategic challenge to Indian influence in the South Asian region.

Bangladesh’s growing dependence on Chinese weapon systems could also see the country become the first export customer after Pakistan for the Chinese-built FC-1/JF-17 and FC-20/J-10 fighter aircraft, both of which were built by China with foreign sales in mind. Beijing will be lobbying hard for Dhaka to agree to procure the jets – perhaps even offering loans to make the procurement happen – in order to give its export models some early traction.

The second-hand submarine that Bangladesh is seeking in order to further safeguard its offshore assets is also likely to be sourced from China. Despite an interest in contributing more fully to international peace-keeping missions, the protection of those offshore energy resources in the face of competition from India and Burma is Bangladesh’s prime motivation. Close ties with China will also benefit the country in its local rivalry with Burma, another Chinese ally but one that Beijing regards as more problematic than the Bangladeshis. The protection of its sometimes restive border with Burma – which also operates Chinese tanks, though not the new MBT-2000 – will be one of the main contingencies for Bangladesh’s newly procured armour.
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

RAW is turning Bangladesh into A battle field for Indian Interests
28 February 2011 at 07:38
logo of Indian Secret Agency RAW(Research and Analysis Wing)

(Dedicated the Article in honor of the assassinated 56 Military officers in Pilkhana in Feb 25-26th, 2010)

Introduction:Indian RAW and Bangladeshi DGFI-NSI Jointly operate in Bangladesh that indicates a new reality where the doubts are raising heads from the smokes.

Questions:

1. Is Bangladesh government really gone under Indian government's command and control?

2. Is Bangladesh commanded by Indian Arm forces?

3. Is RAW determine the fate of Bangladesh and become self-made colonial power?

4. Did the present Government allow RAW to operate inside Bangladesh secretly?

5. Is Indian and Awami league Government executing the Indira-Tazuddin treaty of 1971?

6. Is Awami league government really going in war against China and Pakistan becoming the tail of Indian Arm forces?

7. Is Indian Army taking revenge against the Bangladeshi Armies for 1965 war where Bengal regiment of Pakistani Army fought against Indians? Are Indians playing bluffing plans to crush Bangladesh Arm forces again and again?

8. Are India and other anti-Muslim powers jointly adapting the tactful war strategy against Bangladesh, the connecting route of South and East Asia to take control over it, as the war in Afghanistan experienced the same in the route way to Central and South Asia?

Answers and Analysis:

Bangladesh is thrown under a massive battle; internal and externally where as it needs internal unity, peace and strength for survival and advancement for the citizens. Let us summarize the political situation of Bangladesh.

1) Some weak and known political figures are in face with embarrassing situation always fighting each other. But the main shows are controlled by a most corrupt, greedy, liar cruel syndicate of Political-administrative-Business-Army- Currency launders-smugglers-Police- Educationists-youths-Intelligence and Judicial group.

2) They are assigned to turn Bangladesh vulnerable as soon as possible before the war appears in borders between India vs. China-Pakistan for a muscle show to be countable as a regional super power. America and European war industries need to engage these to powers in war to keep Asia weak in economy.

3) Bangladesh Arm forces, Intelligence directorates, police and RAB will be re-set up gradually and bringing under Indian command and control.

4) The ownerships of the export oriented Industries are transferring to Indians and continue strikes and setting fire in the rest of the Industries sabotaging by RAW operatives.

5) All exports channels are to be jammed.

6) The Hospitals and Universities to bring under poisonous drug addiction under commando form of distribution network.

7) Avoiding democratic norms and practice and terrorizing the non pro-Indian society and the administration and law and order officials.

8) Leaders of BNP and Jamaat politicians pushed in numbness.

9) The general public becoming frustrated on Indian dominances and already started reactions.

Let us touch some points of the regional muscle power competitions, such as;

1) Indian Military Chief General V K Singh on 15th October, 2010 declares any conventional war against China and Pakistan and possibility of using Nuclear weapons.

2) Indian Ambassador in Washington DC, Meera Shankar expressed concerns due to Chinese heavy military enforcement in Indian East and Western borders and building powerful Rail stations and Rail communications closest to India-Pak and India-China borders.

3) Pakistan has exposed their strong alignment with China in all respects; Military, financial, communication and Gas pipe line. Newly built Pakistani Gwadar Sea port is transferred to the Chinese authority which make easy naval moves in Indian Ocean and multi-diversified routes to central Asia also.

4) CNN circulated news of Bin Laden of his staying in Pakistan. Ex-President of Afghanistan Borhan uddin Rabbani becomes the president of Afghan Peace Council for Taleban-Afgan government formal negotiations to quiet the war and establish peace in Afghanistan.

5) Pakistan stands with major roles and Iran also supports the NATO in peace making.

6) Defense Secretary Robert Gates has announced his support to the peace process in Afghanistan from the NATO Headquarters in Brussels Alzazeera, Reuters).

7) India has been demolishing the natural design of power routes of Bangladesh (Muslim majority country and enemy) for turning it permanently disable.

Afghanistan is located in strategically connecting route to Central and South Asia and close to Russia and Iran. Bangladesh is the strategically connecting route to South and East Asia and close to China and India. RAW is frustrated in Afghanistan and stationing in Bangladesh as regional center.

India-Pakistan recent debate on war issue China irritating and worrisome to India was the news headline of Tibetan Review.net on October 17th,2010.The Indian Army Chief, General V K Singh, on October 15th,called the terror infrastructure across his country western border and China rising military prowess as irritating and worrisome, reported Times of India online October 15.

Addressing a seminar on Indian Army: Emerging Roles and Tasks in New Delhi, Singh has said, regarding China, we have a rising China, both economically and militarily. Although we have CBMs in place, although we have a very stable border, yet we have a border disputes. He has said, a conventional war with China or Pakistan was highly uncertain but explained that kirmishes can occurs. Pak, China irritants for India: Army Chief was another headline of Deccan Chronicle. The entire news is detailed for the viewers.

New Delhi, Oct. 15: In a candid declaration on Friday, the Army chief, Gen. V.K. Singh, described Pakistan and China as two irritants for Indian national security.

On China, the Army chief cautioned that India has a border disputes with a rising China and said Chinese intentions need to be examined.

On Pakistan, he said there was certain amount of support for terror groups in that country and that India had something to worry about till the time terror camps in that country were intact.

The Army chief also said that while conventional war was not certain, skirmishes were possible and that India should have substantial conventional war-fighting capabilities along with the ability to fight in a nuclear scenario. He said, We have a rising China with economic and military capabilities. Although we have Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) in place and a stable border, we have a border dispute (with China). The intentions (of China) need to be looked at.

The Indian Army already has a doctrine in place to fight a two-fronts war in case of the eventuality of any joint aggression by India's neighbors. But interestingly, the IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik, warned later in the day that a country (adversary)-specific policy could lead India into an arms race and that therefore, the armed forces need to have a capability-specific policy rather than country-specific policy".

The two statements are being interpreted in some quarters as a possible difference in perception on the issue by the two service chiefs. Pakistanis reaction was published in Indian Express on October 16th, 2010 Pakistan on Saturday reacted angrily to the Indian Army chief's remarks describing the country as a major irritant for India's security and about the possibility of a war in a nuclear scenario, saying they were 'jingoistic' and 'unwise'.

Rejecting the allegations made by Indian Army chief Gen V K Singh, Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said in a statement: "The government of Pakistan takes a serious exception to the reported statement of the Indian Army chief about his threat perception from Pakistan, war under a nuclear scenario and uncalled for and gratuitous comments on the internal affairs of Pakistan."

The repetitive mentions by Indian Army's high command "about war under the nuclear scenario is not only irresponsible but also jingoistic and unwise," Basit said. "Such statements and grandstanding by India are evidently unhelpful to the cause of promoting peace, security and stability in South Asia," he added.

The statement and counterstatement gradually fuelling the angers of two enemy countries-India and Pakistan and the Bangladeshis have been witnessing the symbol of such preparation from couple of years since the affairs of Indian Horses and a full General in Bangladesh which appeared more clearly with the Philkhana attack in Dhaka in February 25-26, 2010 under the democratic champion regime of Sheikh Hasina.

In which direction Bangladesh Government moves?

Hasina Government and India have been exercising all efforts in executing the points of treaty with Indo-BD Govt. in 1971 in different style. Though that colonial Roadmap was not followed during the regimes of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Ziaur Rahman in leading Bangladesh. However, both were assassinated under covert sabotage of the foreign powers.

As Hasina and Khaleda are Indian loyalist politicians and the former one is a 100% useful when the latter is found worthless, India chosen the right ally for them in right time and extends 12 hands to create vulnerabilities in Bangladesh categorically as per their routine. RAW already set up their operatives in all stairs of the society and state administration.

Bangladesh is the icon to the bordering neighbors On the other hands, It is widely known to the leaders of the world that Bangladesh become the icon to the people of her bordering neighbor Indian provinces who have been living in the poorest region and vulnerable states of

India and Nepal, Bhutan and Arakan state of Burma . Private sectors are booming fastest and the neighbors are rushing to get jobs and higher social lives in Bangladesh.

Indian policy makers have been witnessing the rapid growing economy in Bangladesh with angers as their people of Northern states are gradually depending on Bangladesh. All most 50% of Indian region is influenced by the socialists and communists. This vast area been discriminated by the Indian main stream politics since the National Congress government took over the governance of India in 1947.

That area holds common historical and cultural commonness with present Bangladesh and differences with the Delhi line of administration. In course of nature this vast region which has been heading up and engaged in guerrilla warfare for Independence is becoming the important consumers of most Bangladeshi products where as Indian government have been forcing keeping Bangladesh a hub of internal smuggling zone and a buffer state.

War-torned Bangladesh is the demand of the RAW So, a war-torned Bangladesh is the demand of the RAW.RAW represents the military, political and economic interests of the Indian Arian capitalists. So, they are engaged in racial operations to instable Bangladesh through friend and enemy Chanoyokkyo tactics.

It is not fighting terrorism rather engaging Bangladesh in war:

Mr. R K Meghan alias Sanayima, the Chairman of United National Liberation Front (UNLF) Meitei rebel group was been arrested from Lalmatia in Mohammadpur, Dhaka city on September 29th, 2010. He was fallen in the catch by a joint operation of Bangladesh and Indian Intelligences. The news was published in Indian Express.com website.

This UNLF was established in November 24th ,1964 and has been fighting for liberating Manipur and Socialist society . It is the oldest Meitei group and might have the link with National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), KUKI national Army, United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) and other guerrilla groups.

Raj Kumar Meghen is the current Chairman of the UNLF. Bangladesh Government never deal any business with them but this rebel leader might took shelter in disguised name in Bangladesh as thousands of Indians enter and stay here without valid passport for the safe and sound life of their families. But there are lot of doubts to use Meghen to propagate against Bangladesh which RAW used to do for targeting the country in keeping pressure. Though it will be useless effort.

My views:

My personal opinion is that a guerrilla leader who cannot support himself from saving from enemies, he is not capable to support his poor and backward nation for their liberation. He should accept the death in smile. I am guerrilla fighter and we liberated Bangladesh. RAW supported us as it went for Indian interests to break and cut off Pakistan, a Muslim enemy country.

Now, Mr. K Meghan is dishonored and might be killed because Indian government never honors the humanity and spirit of liberation.

On what legal basis are these joint operations being carried out in Bangladesh?

There must be some legal agreement allowing RAW to operate in tandem with the DGFI or NSI on Bangladesh soil.

When was this agreement signed and by whom?

More importantly is their a reciprocal agreement allowing DGFI and NSI to operate alongside RAW in India? If not then why have we allowed this liberty to Indian foreign intelligence for them to operate in Bangladesh?

MBI MUNSHI a young Barrister and a researcher from Dhaka wanted to know the answers of these questions or invited some one to share on it.

I feel honor in sharing with my friend. Once I was special guest in National Press Club, Dhaka during my visit in Bangladesh. Possibly from the present Government side everybody will keep shut the mouths as this is the culture of the slaves on their lords and on the other hands, the cabinet has no liberty to comment on this issue. The top gambling issues are limited in top circle affairs. So blaming of the DGFI and NSI for such covert action is not acceptable in any way as they are carrying the orders of the supreme authorities.

Remember Please, untold small and important clue for the Analysts of the Indo-BD relations General Ataul Gani Osmani, the Chief of Mukti Bahini and the Chief of Bangladesh Arm forces was allowed to enter in Dhaka but not to enter in Cantonment until and unless Indian Army vacated Bangladesh. The C A S had to open up the Army Headquarter in a small room in an old building in Minto road, Dhaka. The original handwritten lists of the Indian trained Mukti Bahini was taken away forcefully from that office by Sheikh Kamal and were burnt as RAW decided of creating the situation to let Bangladeshis know it was the Indian war against Pakistan and India won the battle. All the office staffs witnessed the anarchic demonstration and the matter was reported to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Major Mohammed Abdul Jalil, the brave commander of the 9th sector during the liberation war of Bangladesh, was arrested by Indian Army with the consent of BD Government when Mr. Jalil opposed them in passing our million dollars valued Weapons and ammunitions to India from Bangladesh. Indian Army carried everything even the window cover, pillow cover, bad sheet, chair, table, electric wire, light bulbs, kitchen staffs, bathroom fittings etc, what ever they found nearby and did not allow any Bangladeshi Army officer to enter in the cantonment zone.

Bangladesh Government did keep silent and did not �stand with Mr. Jalil in saving the national properties. Every one of the top layer of the politics was engaged of saving their own ass as if their only job was to prove their utmost loyalty to the Indian Army.

These all are the consequences of a covert treaty between India and Bangladesh government signed by Indian and the exile government of Bangladesh in October 1971. This treaty was initiated by Indian foreign Intelligence-RAW. Honorable Premier Tazuddin Ahmed was active to collect the signatures from all the ministers of the exile BD Government. The honorable acting President Syed Nazrul Islam became sick and nervous after going through the docs of the treaty which he signed earlier at the Prime Minister's request and without reading it. The fact was disclosed by the then

Chief of Bangladesh Mission in Delhi Mr. Humayun Rashid Chawdhury in his interview (Masudul Haq; RAW and CIA in the liberation war of Bangladesh).

We know it was happened because of the short of statesmanship and lack of military thinking level of the then politicians who had no experience even to run a provincial government of East Pakistan. Mr. Tazuddin Ahmed was a pro-socialist believer and Pro Indo-Soviet liner. He did not consult with the Mukti bahini sector commanders.

Ambassador Boster saved Mujib and Bangladesh:

It was fact that Sheikh Mujib managed Finance Minister Mr. Taz uddin to resign from the Government position in the same day, the document was taken to Prime Minister in his breakfast table by Khondkar Mostaque Ahmed.

The then HE American Ambassador Davis Eugene Boster in Dhaka promised and extended his full support having the clear consent of the President of United States of America in saving the life of Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in that day when he was invited and requested for the American supports in case of any Indian attack on Him and Bangladesh.

White house did the accurate act what it was needed. (The fact was collected and reconfirmed by responsible Intelligence Sources).

The Indo-BD treaty was signed in October 1971 in Delhi. The main 7 points of the treaty are as follows;-

1)After the establishment of Bangladesh, the administrative officers who actively participated in the war of liberation would remain in their posts. The rest would be terminated and vacant posts would be filled up by the Indian administrative officers.

2)After the liberation of Bangladesh the required number of soldiers would remain in Bangladesh (No time limit was laid down).

3) Bangladesh would not form and maintain any formal Indian regular Armed Forces.

4) To maintain internal security and law and order a militia would be formed comprising of the freedom fighters.

5) The Chief of Staff of the Indian Armed Forces would lead the probable war with Pakistan. The Mukti Bahini (Freedom Fighters) would work under the command of Indian Armed forces.

6) Trade Transactions between the two countries would be free and open. The volume of trade would be calculated once in a year and the price would be paid in pound starlings.

7)The foreign Ministry of Bangladesh would maintain a close liaison� with with external affairs of Ministry of India and the latter would assist the former as per as possible.

This information of the treaty also was mentioned in the book of Dr.Kali Das Byeddyo who was dedicated in keeping liaisons for Bangladesh liberation, having the trusted connections with Awami league leaders and RAW and became Indian citizen after his assigned mission was success. His next mission is on the name of Bongobhumi; separating Hindu influenced regions in Bangladesh.

The leaders are lying everyday and shamelessly appearing to the public with their terrorizing attitude against their competitors. Those snake-Charmers never care those snakes that are already staying around and inside both political power circles and waiting for the appropriate time to bite and kill.

Projects and failures:

a) Bangladesh are already isolated from the Muslim world, especially Saudi Arabia and Malaysia and collapsing the sources of remittances and the major manpower market. Money launders are supported by the government. Crime World is awarded in upper hand. Smuggling routes are keeping unguarded. Major Garment factories are transferred to Indian owners. Man power exporting channels are mishandled. Indian Hindu and non-Muslims are found exported in Muslim countries with fake Muslim names for sabotage against Bangladesh. Internally terrorizing the Muslim citizens and encouraging non-Muslims and Indians (with fake identity) in important Govt. positions of the country and allowing Indian RAW operations in freehand across the country to take control.

b) The State Bank of India is going to replace Bangladesh Bank to collect the remittances from abroad following the case of Bhutan. The Bhutanese are collecting local currencies from local banks against those remittances. The Bhutanese have to remit in the State Bank of India. Finance Minister M A Muhit already exposed the Sonali exchange in abroad is a loosing concern in a reception in a reception meeting organized by Dhaka University Alumni Association, USA in Jackson Heights, and NewYork on October 11, 2010 which is a motivated campaign on the basis of the govt. policy. Sonali Exchange might close if the RAW guidance functions accurately.


Conclusion:-
RAW already stationed Dhaka. It must be closed soon. But that will need the changed situation which will be enough to compel them to be back. May be their insecurities or other alternative. CIA might play a negotiating role in it. The Intelligence agencies of Bangladesh should be utilized to collect the information to secure the country interests; the Industries, trades, educational systems, health and communications and Sea sides and to protect the country from smuggling of poisonous drugs, arms etc and saving from the regular attacking from Indian and Myanmar sides in the bordering areas.

Intelligence agency is needed to save exports and manpower markets and to secure the routes of remittances and other interests in abroad. We do not permit anybody to rent our Intelligence directorates to India for their internal vulnerabilities. The patriot intellectuals, bureaucrats and diplomats are welcome to about turn and take lead to change the political decisions and bring back the steering of the country towards the safest Journey.
------------------------
(The writer is a free-lancer Journalist, freedom fighter, political analyst and an observer of Indian Ocean region).
Email:ivercrossinternational@yahoo.com.
Taken from FB dated 2010, the aborted BDR mutiny was another attempt to kill Haseena which fortunately failed to India's benefit
Aditya G
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3565
Joined: 19 Feb 2002 12:31
Contact:

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Aditya G »

I believe this thread should be present on BRF. However, I request the scope be expanded to all SAARC countries.
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Aditya, The Chinese are trying hard to Bangladesh into the cat's paw and act against Indian interests, furthermore it's unique single ethnic character, growing economy, transition from a basket case country, 170 million pop, and peaceful nature make it different from other SAARC nations in posing a demographic threat to India. They have killed 10s of millions of Hindus after 1971 as well.

No other SAARC nation (inc Pakistan) has the ability to threaten Indian interests the way Bangladesh can.
Conflict in Bangladesh’s Secular & Religious elites

05-19-2013

Introduction

Bangladesh is passing through the toughest period of history since the country’s birth in 1971. Up until this period the country of 160 million people were struggling against poverty, natural disaster and corruption. Bangladesh suffered under military regime in the cold war era as other 3rd world countries. Since 1991 as a new democracy this country has maintained a graph of development despite natural, social and political troubles. Recently Moody has ranked it among next 15 countries in the world ( cite), a GDP of 6 was maintained throughout last decades.[1]

However, along with these success stories, the parallel point of dissatisfaction was the political situation of the country. From 1991 onwards, corruption became an epidemic and Bangladesh was named as most corrupted country in the world for 3 consecutive years. Political violence has reached maximum extent so that it experience more than 200 days of strikes in 2 years of 1994 to 1996 and costs lives of many.[2]

There are two reasons behind the chaos, first is the lack of trust in the system and disagreement among the political parties on the electoral system, opposition parties were not convinced to take part in a election under the party in the power. After facing difficult situations and experiencing economical losses the country managed to establish a system of caretaker government, a interim government under leadership of Chief Justice of Supreme Court accompanied by advisors.[3]

Second reason and focus of my paper is the cause and effect of The Tribunal for crime against humanity in Bangladesh, ICT, which is been set up to punish the criminals who were responsible for mass murder and act of violence in 1971’s Bangladeshi Liberation war[4].

Since 1996 the general elections were held under the caretaker government, the current government abolished the system and opposition parties raised against the decision and political situation is becoming troubled as the opposition parties took the street and government is filling the prison with political prisoners.

In this paper, I will discuss about the vital force behind this chaotic situation which has been added as the Awami League government set up tribunal for the crime against humanity as it was their electoral mandate. The convicts of this tribunal are leaders of Jamat e Islami (JI), an ally with the main opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

In this paper I will provide evidence that all these development in different political scopes has brought Bangladesh in a volatile position which is very clearly visible in fragmentation of the society. My conclusion is that, now the country is standing near the edge, with a prediction that, dialogue between the two major political parties on Electoral system could resolve the traumatic situation of country because if the major parties agrees upon the rule of politics then the JI will lost support for its violence, but if the dialogue fails then Bangladesh will probably experience non democratic government again.

Summary of Bangladeshi politics

………………………………………………………………

Secular Elites: are those who believe in the Bengali Nationalism and Secular constitution. They are devoted to uphold ethnic symbols like Bengali New Year and do not welcome pan Islamic ideas to be reflected in the state structures. Intellectuals and media personals are the backbones of this group and despite their proportional little presence in the population of Bangladesh, they secured important positions and general respect from in the society. Specially among the young generation they are popular and this group is the main advocate of the demand to bring justice to the victims of 1971. Their political alignment is pro AL and the leftists parties.

Religious Elites: are those who hold their believe in pan Islamic solidarity and were the supporters of anti AL political parties. Despite the secular nature of Bangladesh, they have very strong hold in the society through the network of hundreds of thousands of religious schools (madrashas) and ordinary religious Bangladeshis. They are against the secular trend of society. They are politically aligned with BNP and JI. The new organization which is named Hifazat e Islam has turned into the guardian of the Religious elites, lead by 93 years of Ahmed Shafi who is a principal of a Madrasha at the port city of Chittagong. [5] They brought 13 demands focusing on the religious values at the society. [6]

The 1st source of Conflict: Abolishment of Caretaker System

After restoring democracy in 1991, Bangladeshi political parties failed to developed trust in the system. Three organs of the states were not fully independent and the opposition party AL refused to enter into the election under the party government. So AL with other opposition group such as leftists and Islamists joined together for the demand of a non partisan caretaker government who’s duty will be to held the national election. After long political violence, BNP government meet the demand by amending constitution and Caretaker system made its entry.

Caretaker Government was lead by former Chief Justice and 15 advisors who would play the role of the heads of state’s executives. Two elections of 1996 and 2001 held under this system. AL won the election of 1996 and in 2001 BNP and its ally Jamat e Islami won.

Before 2006 election, the trouble begun as the governing BNP has attempted to bring their allegedly favorable person in the position of Chief Justice to lead the caretaker government. AL and opposition reacted against this decision furiously but the government was reluctant on their decision, and as a consequence violence in the street spread throughout the country. Some of the advisors of Caretaker government resigned and the Military intervene in the scene as the President declared State of Emergency.

This time the caretaker government went beyond their duty of holding election and they started reforms in the state with support from military. The state of emergency stayed for 2 years. Later as internal and external demand for restoring elected government were in rise, they arranged National election on 2009. AL had a landslide victory in the election and secured absolute majority in the parliament.

With this absolute majority, AL amended the constitution and abolished the caretaker system based on the judgment of Supreme Court, on the ground that the caretaker system was undemocratic and threat over country’s democracy ( but had an advisory opinion that the system may continue for 1 or 2 more election to develop the practice of democracy). Opposition party, mainly BNP and JI opposed the decision.

As the next election of 2014 approaching near, in 2013 BNP made it clear that they will not accept any election under the ruling party’s authority and they want the caretaker system back ( as it is not possible to bring the system back because of Supreme Court’s ruling, they are asking for something similar in another name), they started street demonstration and calling nationwide strikes.

The government is taking extremely harsh measures to suppress the protests as the demonstrations are turning violent regularly. In a situation like this, now the international community and UN is trying mediate the situation and bring a peaceful settlement.
………………………………………………..

The Effects of the procedure of the tribunal :

ICT was formed to punish the criminals who committed crimes against humanity in 1971. They were local collaborator of Pakistani army who facilitate murder of 3 millions of people, rape of two hundred thousand woman and mass torture. The Pakistani war criminals were taken hostage by the Indian military as they lost battle against India according to the surrender treaty.

Al had their election mandate to punish the local collaborators before the 2009 election. They set up the ICT and brought 5 JI leaders and 1 BNP leaders who were alleged. In 2013 the ICT started to give verdicts and the second verdict caused serious trouble as ICT gave lifetime imprisonment to one of the leader of JI. Pro 71 youth took the street of Shahbagh to protest against the verdict as they found it very mild. The ruling party’s student wing Bangladesh Chatro League (BCL) joined them and later the leaders of AL joined them. Pro secular media and media persons also joined them and showed enthusiasm. Thus the capital of Bangladesh Dhaka witnessed the biggest public gathering in last 20 years, demanding Death Sentence of Kader Mollah.

Later the ruling party leaders expressed their solidarity with the Shahbagh Movement and received 6 demands from the protestors. Based on those demand the government amended ICT law, and introduced a provision enabling state prosecutors to appeal against the judgment to ask for strict punishment than the given, which was absent before. Government met the demand of the protestors by creating opportunity for capital punishment to Mollah. Thus, the pro71 came into the spotlight of national media.

But, under the spotlight, suddenly an pro71 activists was murdered by some university students, who claimed to carried their religious duty by killing him as he was writing insulting blogs hurting their religious values. A day later, a anti government newspaper ‘Amar Desh’ published some of the blogs of the murdered person and some others showing how they were writing against Islam and Prophet Muhammad (SW). This caused anger all over the country and especially to the thousands of Madrashas and millions of their students. This radical religious population started to demonstrate on the street demanding punishment of the atheist bloggers. Later a non political organization came into the scene name Hifazat E Islam (protector of Islam), they brought 13 points demand including punishment of the atheist bloggers and rallied into the capital Dhaka city from all over the country, and their demonstration surpassed the previous demonstration at Shahbag in size.

The government respond them and the prime minister said her government will meet the demand as much it is possible without violating country’s constitution. Last 5th May, Hifazat e Islam again came to Dhaka and asked for immediate application of their demands, and declared that they will not leave the Shapla Squar ( a square in the middle of the city’s financial centre) until the demands meet. That night the government had a very unpreceedental crack down on them and evacuated the area taken by Hifazat within 30 minutes. After that there were allegation of mass murder in several TV channels and they were been shutdown by government’s executive order. And as of 19th May, the government put a ban on any kind of political rally or meeting for the next 1 month.

International Reaction on ICT:

Human Rights Watch initially supported the establishment of the tribunal and recommended amendments to the 1973 law. The government already had planned to update the law, and proceeded in consultation with experts.[7]

When the tribunal was being planned, Stephen Rapp, the United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues, said that the “US government will help Bangladesh hold an open and transparent war crimes trial with the rights of defense for the accused.”[8] Kristine A. Huskey, writing for the NGO Crimes of War, said Rapp gave a ten-page letter to the prosecution which included recommendations and various concerns.[9]

A Wikileaks leaked cable in November 2010 from the US State Department said, “There is little doubt that hard-line elements within the ruling party [AL] believe that the time is right to crush Jamaat and other Islamic parties.”[10]

The Turkish president Abdullah Gül sent a letter to the tribunal asking that clemency be shown to those accused of war crimes[11]. The European Parliament has passed three resolutions supporting the trials.Jean Lambert welcomed the trials and said she expected them to adhere to international standards.[12]

Sam Zarifi of the International Commission of Jurists expressed concern that the flawed nature of trials conducted at the ICT could deepen the divisions in Bangladeshi society which resulted from the war of 1971, rather than heal them.[13]

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has said that the arbitrary detention of the suspects and refusal by the government to grant bail to them violates Article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Shafique Ahmed has responded, “It is not right to think that the accused are being detained without any reason. There are no violations of human rights in the ongoing trial of crimes against humanity, and questions of human rights violation are being raised simply to create confusion.”[14]


National Reaction to ICT:

Bangladeshi opposition political parties have demanded the release of those held, claiming the arrests are politically motivated[15]. Shafique Ahmed, the Minister of Law and Justice, disagrees, saying, “No one is being arrested or tried on religious or political grounds.”[16]

Mizanur Rahman, chair of the National Human Rights Commission, has said the trials do adhere to international law as the “national standards are in compliance with international standards”.[17]

The Bangladeshi government has dismissed criticisms of the legal provisions and fairness of the tribunal. Shafique Ahmed, the Minister of Law and Justice, said, “There is no scope for questioning the fairness and standard of the ongoing trial for war crimes during the Liberation War in 1971.”[18]



Problem of New Democracy :

As we know that the problem of new democracy is lack of trust in the rule of game. The abolishment of the caretaker system despite political opposition shows it is an expected error of the system. Bangladesh is still a developing country with huge uneducated population and widespread corruption. There is lack of trust among political parties and partisans, and the enormous numbers of party members are been used in the public demonstration does overrides natural public opinion. So the opinions we see in medias are actually distorted shadows.

The recent inclusion of ideological clash was the only lack of a political disaster.


Conclusions

My personal views on the current political situation in Bangladesh is, the state has came under two fold trouble, one is structural, other is ideological. And both is fuelling each other. The Seculars aligned with AL and Religious elites aligned with BNP, but as AL is trying to engineer the national election at a time when the nation is in crucial stage of brining crucial justice for the victims of crimes against humanity, natural flow of the society has been terminated. BNP, even if it is not against the ICT but because of political equations can’t lend support to the tribunal, which is strengthening the opposition force of ICT. In this moment of confusion, the population is lacking of leadership, so they can not express their voices behind any of the parties. Population is looking for a middle road which will lead to a free & fair election, at the same time they want ICT to act accordingly. But because of the political chaos, they lost ground to reflect their will.

Bangladesh may probably lean towards Rightist politics, meaning more influence of religion in the political arena.
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Wrt India,the PLA strategy is to shore up the two 'Stans' on either side. One it helped go nuclear the other it is helping go demographic. @sjha1618
Paul
BRF Oldie
Posts: 3800
Joined: 25 Jun 1999 11:31

Re: Bangladesh armed forces watch!

Post by Paul »

Tricky offer to Dhaka
https://www.telegraphindia.com/1170112/ ... 129885.jsp

SUJAN DUTTA
New Delhi, Jan. 11: India has offered to train Bangladesh navy crews in operating submarines after Dhaka recently acquired the first of two boats from Beijing.

India has also agreed to host Vietnamese air force pilots to train in advanced combat techniques on Sukhoi fighter jets. Both the Indian and Vietnamese air forces fly variants of the Sukhoi 30 combat jets.

But it is New Delhi's offer to host Bangladesh submarine crews at INS Satavahana, the Indian Navy submarine academy at Visakhapatnam that is a delicate matter.

Bangladesh's recent acquisition of a Chinese Ming-class Type 035B submarine was initially a surprise for countries in the Bay of Bengal region. Despite China being a reasonably consistent supplier of equipment to the Bangladesh military, Dhaka's acquisition of the first of two-Ming-class submarines was surprising for most countries around the Bay of Bengal region. This is the first time the Bangladesh Navy has acquired undersea combat capability.

The Ming-class submarines supplied to China were built in the 1990s and were refurbished before being given to Bangladesh under a three-year-old contract. China is also understood to have trained a small Bangladeshi crew, as part of the contract, at its submarine base in Hainan Island at the rim of the South China Sea.

The Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has over the years expanded its submarine fleet to more than 60, many of them the Type 093B nuclear-boats. This expansion has been accompanied by an increasing deployment of its warship flotillas, including submarines, in the Indian Ocean region in waters around India. The official reason cited by China is its prolonged deployment for intensive counter-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden and off the Horn of Africa.

But the Indian and US navies find little operational logic in the Chinese deployment of submarines - some of which have been nuclear-powered - for the stated task. Two submarines of the PLAN were known to have docked in a Pakistani port last year.

The Indian Navy has now proposed to host Bangladeshi crews who will operate the Chinese-built submarines at three of its schools in INS Satavahana: the Submarine Training School (SMS), the Escape Training School (ETS) and the School of Advanced Undersea Warfare (SAUW).

This is also where the Indian Navy has in the past hosted Vietnamese naval crew. Both the Indian and Vietnamese navies operate Russian-origin Kilo-class submarines.

An agreement to train Vietnamese fighter pilots in India was reached last month during talks led by the south east Asian nation's defence minister who was in New Delhi at the head of a 30-member delegation.

The two sides initially were planning for a team of Indian Air Force instructors to be deployed in Vietnam. But they then changed the plan and agreed that the Vietnamese pilots should be hosted at IAF bases.

India is also understood to be in talks with Vietnam to supply Akash medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAMs) systems. The SAMs - developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and now being inducted into the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force - have a range of 25km.

The DRDO claims they can intercept targets - such as incoming missiles - at a height of 20km after being activated.
Post Reply