Mar. 17 – Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to secure Chinese funding for a massive redevelopment of Bangladesh’s Chittagong Port. The port opens out into the Indian Ocean and would provide access to Indian, Middle Eastern, and Southeast Asian markets for southwest China.

The port is subject to a planned US$8 billion refit and both Bangladesh and China are keen to link the port to Kunming via road and rail links across Burma and into Yunnan. Chittagong was an important port in the days of the British Raj in India, but has suffered since partition from India and a civil war with Pakistan. Chittagong empties out into the Bay of Bengal and has deep water facilities. The Bangladeshi Government is in high level talks in Beijing until Friday.