New Delhi: Bangladesh was officially welcomed on Wednesday as the fifth member State of the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC), a grouping that includes India, Sri Lanka, Mauritius and the Maldives.

India, Mauritius, Maldives and Sri Lanka welcomed Bangladesh into the grouping at the 8th Deputy National Security Adviser (DNSA) level meeting hosted virtually by Mauritius today. Seychelles participated as an Observer State at the meeting.

Member States agreed that the 7th NSA level meeting of the CSC will be held in India later this year.

The National Security Advisers of India, Mauritius and Sri Lanka, as well as delegates from the Seychelles and Bangladesh on Thursday participated in the 6th NSA-level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC) in Mauritius last December.

Meanwhile in today's CSC, Member States reviewed decisions taken at the 7th DNSA level meeting hosted virtually by Maldives on July 12, 2023, the sixth NSA level Meeting hosted by Mauritius on 7-8 December 2023.

They also reviewed the progress of activities under the Roadmap of Activities for 2023-2024 of the CSC.

Member States agreed that the 7th NSA level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave will be held in India later this year, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement today.

India was represented by Pankaj Kumar Singh, Deputy National Security Adviser (Internal Affairs), while Bangladesh was represented by Lt. Gen. Mizanur Rahman Shameem, Principal Staff Officer, Armed Forces Division, Prime Minister's Office, Bangladesh.

Major General (Retd.) Hameed Shafeeg, Deputy National Security Adviser of Maldives, Yoidhisteer Thecka, Principal Coordinator Security Matters in Prime Minister's Office of Mauritius, and General LHSC Silva, Chief of Defence Staff of Sri Lanka led delegations of their respective countries.

The Secretariat of the CSC in Colombo, Sri Lanka, was represented by the Acting Secretary Commodore AD Weerasinghe and the delegation from Seychelles was led by Lt Col Michael Hollanda, Commander of Land Force, Seychelles Defence Forces.

India was represented by NSA Ajit Doval at the 6th National Security Adviser level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC) that was held in Mauritius on December 7, 2023 and saw participation by Mauritius and Sri Lanka, as well as delegates from Seychelles and Bangladesh.

The Colombo Security Conclave was established in 2020, when India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives agreed to expand the scope of their trilateral meeting on maritime cooperation. Mauritius joined the conclave at the fifth meeting of the grouping in Male in March 2022.

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