Foreign ministers from seven countries of south and southeast Asia have concluded their meeting in Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka with an agreement to share intelligence for cracking down on terrorism.
The trade group, known as the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, or BIMSTEC, also agreed to block all sources of terror financing. The ministers of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand also discussed a regional free trade agreement that is due to come into effect in July 2006. They also reviewed reports on six major sectors of the member countries -- trade and investment, transport and communications, agriculture and fisheries, tourism, energy, and technology. BIMSTEC was formed in 1997 to forge greater economic cooperation in Asia. More from our Dhaka stringer Amir Khasru .