Nepal, April 10 -- 5, heads of state from the seven member countries of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) met in Bangkok, Thailand to attend the sixth summit of the regional cooperation mechanism. Established in 1997, BIMSTEC included Nepal and Bhutan as its members in 2004. Its secretariat was established in Dhaka in 2014, and a charter was adopted only during the fifth summit meeting. The initiative focuses on maritime connectivity, human resource development, capacity building, energy cooperation and transport connectivity, with the Bay of Bengal at its core. It has also addressed security issues, such as the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief exercises with the first ...