Dhaka: Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Ignacio Ybanez Rubio on Sunday thanked Bangladesh government for its support in helping Spain to become elected member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2015-2016 term.

‘I wanted to come here to express my gratitude for the support that we've got on this operation. We're ready to cooperate with Bangladesh in the two years,’ he told reporters at the Foreign Ministry after a meeting with Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali and State Minister M Shahriar Alam.

Rubio said Bangladesh is a member of the UN Human Rights Council and this is another area where both the countries are going to work together.

Asked what they discussed at the meeting, he said they spoke about situation in the two countries and both sides explained how they see the situation in Bangladesh and in Spain. ‘We wished the best for the two countries from different sides.’

Rubio, however, did not want to make any comment on Bangladesh's current political situation saying, ‘I listened to him. He (minister) explained how things are evolving.’

He said they hope things are moving at the right direction as the minister has mentioned.

The Spanish Secretary of State said the meeting has been a very useful and both sides laid emphasis on good cooperation. ‘We're looking at many issues with the support of Bangladesh.’

On bilateral relations, he said they have a very good economic cooperation and many Spanish companies are operating here with Bangladesh companies.

‘We're more than ready to cooperate further,’ he said mentioning some areas like textile sector, infrastructure, transport and energy.

The Spanish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs arrived here early on Sunday to discuss various bilateral issues with Bangladesh.

Rubio congratulated Bangladesh for winning Women in Parliament (WIP) award recently, according to a Foreign Ministry media release.

He also highly appreciated the achievements of Bangladesh in the areas of economy and countering terrorism.

The Spanish delegation positively responded to Bangladesh's proposal to regularly hold Foreign Office Consultation between the two countries.

Spanish Ambassador in Dhaka Luis Tejada Chacon, Deputy General Director for Southern and Eastern Asia, Fernando Alonso, Deputy Chief of Mission in the Spanish Embassy in Dhaka Patrick Sandoval and Economic and Commercial Counsellor in the Spanish Embassy with residence in New Delhi Carlos Jimenez were also present at the bilateral meeting with State Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Welcoming the Spanish delegation, Shahriar said the visit would expand and strengthen bilateral and diplomatic relations.

Rubio will leave Dhaka on Monday wrapping up his two-day visit.