The much-anticipated meeting between BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman and Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser to the interim government of Bangladesh, has served to settle nerves among Bangladeshis worldwide. The meeting at the Dorchester Hotel in London, had been finalised around a week in advance, ahead of the CA's visit to the British capital, where he received an award from King Charles III, and held important meetings with various officials, and was greeted with the news that Britain's serious crime agency has frozen UK property worth £170m belonging to the former land minister in the Awami League regime, Saifuzzaman Chowdhury.

There was also the notable absence of a meeting with his counterpart, Sir Keir Starmer, the British prime minister. But all of this was dwarfed by speculation and anticipation surrounding the meeting with Tarique. Bangladesh's experience of such meetings to try and resolve political impasses has not been a good one. And this meeting was taking place at a particularly sensitive time, with a standoff over the election date threatening to pull apart the coalition that had come together to bring about the downfall of the Awami League regime last year.

In the end, the two leaders displayed considerable political maturity to pull off a meeting that has served to reassure Bangladeshis that their future is in good hands. This is the first time in Bangladesh's political history that a potentially serious political crisis has been avoided by two people sitting on the sofa and talking calmly. Any two civilised people with differences can negotiate and come to a sensible place. This can only be seen as a good example for our children in Bangladesh.

Neither party came in with battle-hardened positions that they weren't ready to yield on. Dr Yunus told the BNP acting chairman that if preparations are completed in time, the next general election could be held in the week preceding Ramadan in 2026, i.e. February 10-16, rather than in early April of 2026, as announced earlier (and which remains in place). It is conditional however, on significant progress being made by then regarding reforms and the trial of the mass killings during the July-August mass uprising, said the joint statement.

The statement said Tarique Rahman proposed to the Chief Adviser that the national election be held before Ramadan next year. He made sure to invoke the party's matriarch, Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia, saying she also believes that holding the election during that time would be appropriate.

After their meeting, Yunus effusively praised Tarique Rahman, which is rare for the Nobel laureate, known to harbour misgivings about Bangladeshi politicians. According to a source in the CA's inner circle, Yunus appeared genuinely impressed by Rahman's vision and his grasp of the country's political fault lines.

Tarique did come prepared. It was the biggest meeting of his last 17 years in exile, and probably also the biggest meeting of his life. And he pulled it off with aplomb. Everything from his body language to his measured tone to his arrival at the hotel came off well. Very assured, confident, and respectful. The 59-year-old sought Yunus's advice on granular aspects of governance and reform, and shared his own perspectives on Yunus's proposals for state-building. Yunus, in turn,reminisced his past interactions with late President Ziaur Rahman, Tarique's father, who once consulted him on ideas for rural government.

BNP have a good leader coming up, who derives his entire legitimacy on the big stage alongside personalities like Dr Yunus, from his party's supporters. He stands toe-to-toe with them, on the basis of this huge support base. That is a good thing.

As a citizen of Bangladesh, the images and vibes and joint statement from today's meeting are all very reassuring.

Enayetullah Khan is Editor-in-Chief, United News of Bangladesh (UNB) and Dhaka Courier.