For the first time in twenty years, Bangladesh and Pakistan have revived their Joint Economic Commission (JEC), holding a two-day session in Dhaka earlier this week. The meeting, co-chaired by Bangladesh’s Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed and Pakistan’s Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik, was intended to restart economic cooperation after two decades of silence.

Yet, behind the optics of goodwill lies a risky political and economic calculation. Bangladesh’s engagement with an economy on the brink of collapse raises more doubts than optimism. The meeting may have been framed as a milestone, but the reality is that Dhaka has little to gain and much to lose from deepening ties with a financially unstable Pakistan.

A revival after two decades

The JEC, the highest bilateral platform for ec

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