India, Bangladesh need to cooperate on ‘grey areas’ in Bay of Bengal maritime boundaries

Joshua Alexander, founder of Maritime Frontiers. File Photo: Special Arrangement

India and Bangladesh resolved maritime boundary issues but there are “grey areas” in the maritime boundary that pose challenges to authorities on both sides and call for closer coordination, said a leading maritime expert and consultant here earlier this week. Speaking to The Hindu, Joshua Alexander, founder of Maritime Frontiers, an Australian ocean and maritime consultancy who provided technical expertise to Bangladesh on maritime issues said that during the Hasina years Bangladesh dealt with the threat of piracy near the Chittagong port effectively which has increased its attractiveness to the global shipping industry.

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“It was quite interesting to see that Bangladesh and India were willing resolve their dispute on maritime boundaries. They both went to a tribunal and agreed to abide by the decision of the tribunal. But the boundaries that have been agreed are not really simple,” said Mr. Alexander who worked during 2009-‘21 on maritime issues with the Government of Bangladesh. A UN Tribunal on the India-Bangladesh maritime boundary dispute in 2014 awarded Bangladesh 19,467 sq. km of the 25,602 sq km sea area of Bay of Bengal.