Beijing, China – Beijing's hopes were dashed when Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina concluded her visit to China without firming up a deal for the Teesta River Comprehensive Management and Restoration Project. In fact, China appears displeased that Bangladesh is negotiating with India over the Teesta project instead. During her recent visit to Beijing, China offered Sheikh Hasina a loan assistance package of only $100 million, a steep drop from the earlier promise of $5 billion. President Xi Jinping met with Sheikh Hasina for only about half an hour, much shorter than she expected, prompting her to cut short her visit and return to Dhaka a day earlier than scheduled.

Despite signing 21 memorandums of understanding and announcing seven projects to be set up in Bangladesh, none of these were significant, and there was no mention of the Teesta project in the agreements.

Reports from Dhaka indicate that the only memorandum relating to river water signed during the visit was the renewal of a MoU on the provision of hydrological information on the Brahmaputra River during the flood season. Bangladesh reportedly insisted on this MoU on India's advice, given New Delhi's concerns about China's transparency on hydrological data for the Brahmaputra, which is crucial for the Indian plains of Assam. China plans to divert Brahmaputra water from Tibet for industrial needs and is constructing a large hydro-electric project on the river, raising concerns about the potential impact on water flow downstream.

China has been attempting to leverage the delay in the signing of the Teesta water-sharing deal between India and Bangladesh, which has been stalled due to opposition from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. She argues that sharing the water would harm farmers in north Bengal. Beijing's goal is to establish a presence in northern Bangladesh near India's sensitive Siliguri corridor, but Sheikh Hasina's close ties with India make such a prospect unlikely.

With India now offering to construct a reservoir for storing Teesta water in northern Bangladesh, the situation has shifted. A memorandum of understanding has already been signed between New Delhi and Dhaka for this project, and India will soon send a technical team to Bangladesh to work out the details. Sheikh Hasina has stated that she will choose the offer most beneficial for Bangladesh but has expressed a preference for the Indian offer, given India's ability to manage the flow of Teesta water.

China has no control over the flow of Teesta water, which originates in India and is regulated by the Gazaldoba barrage in north Bengal, near the Bangladesh border. Without assurance of water flow, the Chinese project holds little value. Furthermore, experts note that China's proposal focuses more on power generation and urbanization than irrigation and flood control.

Experts in Bangladesh advise against accepting the Chinese proposal. Dr. Nazrul Islam, former chief of development research at the UN, criticized the plan in Prothom Alo English. He noted that PowerChina's primary expertise is in power generation, not river management. The proposal to drastically narrow the Teesta's breadth and increase its depth could lead to severe erosion and flash floods.

China appeared to anticipate Bangladesh's lack of interest in its offer, especially after India's proposal. Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen acknowledged that the decision on the Teesta project lies with Bangladesh. "The Teesta River is within the territory of Bangladesh. So it is your river. Any project regarding the Teesta River is for Bangladesh to decide upon. That decision must be respected by all of us," Yao Wen stated at the Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka earlier in July.