DHAKA: Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali will leave Dhaka on Monday night for China to join the 4th Summit of CICA scheduled to open on 21 May.

The minister will attend at a meeting in Shanghais on Conference of International and Confident Building Measures in Asia (CICA), said ministry sources.  

Established in 1999, CICA is an inter-governmental forum for enhancing cooperation towards promoting peace, security and stability in Asia.  

It is a forum based on the recognition that there is close link between peace, security and stability in Asia and in the rest of the world. 

The entry of Bangladesh into CICA as a full member is strategically important for Bangladesh. 

CICA, being one of the largest political entities in Asia, has potentials to create impact upon the politics of this continent. 

It also pursues the multilateral cooperation in the fields of peace, security and stability in Asia. CICA has the potential to expanding trade among the member states, particularly with central Asian countries.

Bangladesh would try to promote trade and investment relations with the CICA member states. Bangladesh can utilize the CICA forum for projecting Bangladesh.   

China is the incumbent chairman of CICA and Turkey will be the next chairman for 2014-15 tenure.

BDST: 2055 HRS, MAY 19, 2014