The fishy diplomacy causing tensions between Bangladesh and India

When we think about diplomacy we often picture handshakes and lavish receptions, but animals too have sometimes been involved in this crucial part of global relations.

Recently, some "fishy diplomacy" has caused "diplomatic tensions" and a "culinary crisis" between Bangladesh and India, said Al Jazeera.

Queen among fish

Hilsa, which is Bangladesh's national fish, is "cherished as the queen among fish", said the outlet. Central to the culinary identity of both Bangladesh and the bordering Indian state of West Bengal, it was once used by former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as a "tool of diplomacy" to "foster ties" with India.

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But now the fish, also known as ilish, is at the heart of tensions between the two nations because Bangladesh's interim government briefly banned exports of the fish to India in September. The ban came ahead of the festival of Durga Puja, which honours Goddess Durga's triumph over the demon Mahishasura, when the fish is traditionally eaten with mustard sauce.

Some saw the ban as a reproach for New Delhi's backing of Hasina, who has taken refuge in India since her removal from office. But the Bangladesh authorities insisted that the ban was simply to reduce the cost of the freshwater fish domestically because of a leaner harvest this year.

"We cannot allow ilish to be exported while our own people cannot buy them," Farida Akhter, adviser to the Bangladesh Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, told the Dhaka Tribune.

But the plot thickened when the ban was reversed within two weeks and Bangladesh approved a 3,000-tonne shipment to India. The shipment was received with excitement: when 45 tonnes of the "prized white-fleshed fish" arrived in Calcutta, it drew hundreds of locals to the Howrah wholesale fish market, said Wion.

Sacred status

Whatever the reason for the brief ban, experts said it constituted "a firm departure" from Hasina's tradition of using the fish as a symbol of goodwill and friendship between Dhaka and New Delhi.

Hilsa holds "an almost sacred status" among Bengalis on both sides of the border, so its "scarcity will frustrate many", said the BBC. Although it is Bangladesh's national fish, it is "a luxury, affordable only for the rich and middle class", and "the poor can't buy it".

According to reports in Bangladeshi media, the export ban did nothing to address this – hilsa prices have surged in the local market despite the export ban. A 1.5kg hilsa was selling for around 1,800 taka (£11.50), 1.2kg for 1,600 taka, and one kg for 1,500 taka, but those prices are 150-200 taka higher than last year.

This is not the first time fish have been at the centre of diplomacy: Japan and Indonesia traded gifts of goldenfishes, multicoloured carp and tropical fish called Super Red Arowana in the 1960s and 1990s, said Nikkei Asia.