Bangladesh interim government Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus on Friday called for the revival of the SAARC grouping, stressing regional cooperation based on mutual respect, transparency, and shared prosperity. In his address to the General Debate of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Yunus said that there is no alternative to regional cooperation among neighbours except for shared development.

He said that SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) achieved notable progress in its early years and laid a strong foundation for regional cooperation. Yunus added that despite political deadlock, the grouping's institutional structure remains intact, Bangladesh's state-run BSS news agency reported. The South Asian regional grouping comprises India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Its biennial summits have not taken place since the last one in Kathmandu in 2014.