Bhattarai for one thinks such suspicions are unwarranted. “We have this tendency in Nepal to harp on small issues and not to look at the big picture,” he says. “What is happening with BIMSTEC is only a part of the practice of greater region­al integration seen in all regions of the world.”

 

 

Some chalk up the agreement on a regional power grid as the biggest achievement of the fourth BIMSTEC summit. At least on paper Nepal will now be able to harness its hydropow­er and sell it to other BIMSTEC coun­tries. But thus far there has been no systematic study on whether such cross-border power trade between South Asia and Southeast Asia is even possible. Pretty much the same is true of connectivity via waterways, particularly for landlocked Nepal and Bhutan.

 

 

The seven BIMSTEC member states have also agreed to boost cooperation on anti-terrorism. In line with this objective, India is hosting a week-long BIMSTEC mili­tary exercise starting September 12. “Again, there is no surprise there,” says Rajan Bhattarai. “Disaster man­agement and terrorism are problems that no single country can handle on its own and since the national armies are at the frontline of post-disaster management, it is also not surprising that they seek closer cooperation.”

 

 

Asked about the military drills, Nishchalnath Pandey, the director of the Center for South Asian Studies, replies, “Of foremost importance for BIMSTEC is to have a governing char­ter without any delay. Any deviation from this task will create controversy and misunderstanding.”

 

 

Pandey says that it is hard to talk of meaningful cooperation within BIMSTEC without a char­ter. He also outlines a baseline for BIMSTEC. “At least there could be visa on arrival for BIMSTEC nationals in each other’s countries. Otherwise, why would people value the organization?”

 

 

But Bhattarai contends that BIM­STEC, and the fourth summit in particular, has already notched up significant achievements. “We were able to bring down priority areas from 14 to five, we agreed to expand and consolidate BIMSTEC Secretar­iat, we expressed our commitment to come up with a governing charter by the time of the fifth summit,” he responds. “What more can you expect from a single summit?”