BANGLADESH INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AND STRATEGIC STUDIES

THE LOGIC BEHIND TRILATERAL MODEL FOR IMPLEMENTING THE FIRST NUCLEAR POWER PLANT IN BANGLADESH

Author: Md. Sohel Rana, Md. Shafiqul Islam

DOI Link: https://www.doi.org/10.56888/BIISSj2021v42n2a1

ABSTRACT

Development of the first nuclear power plant requires extensive national nuclear infrastructure and international cooperation. Bangladesh’s decision to build its maiden nuclear power plant through a trilateral cooperation model is unique in the history of global nuclear power development. Nevertheless, no study has investigated Bangladesh’s rationale for forming a trilateral nuclear partnership with Russia and India. This article meets this gap and explores Bangladesh’s logic behind trilateral nuclear collaboration to implement the country’s first nuclear power project at Rooppur. It finds that politico-strategic, technological, and economic logics have influenced Bangladesh’s decision to forge trilateral nuclear arrangement. While Bangladesh’s relations with partners, nuclear reputation of partners, and win-win interests for all parties underpin the politico-strategic logic; capacity-building and technical assistance, and cost effectiveness and avoidance of construction delay, have provided ground for technological and economic logic, respectively. The study concludes that a convergence of all three logics have shaped Bangladesh’s position to form a trilateral nuclear partnership with Russia and India.