Staff Reporter :
The conclusion of the three-day visit of US Assistant Secretary Donald Lu to Dhaka has created a climate of joy in the ruling Awami League’s establishment, while the main opposition BNP wants to depend on its own strength.
The ruling Awami League reportedly feels happy with the assertion of Lu, who said that the US government wants to look forward instead of looking backward in its relations with Bangladesh.
Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud commented on Thursday that the leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) have been out of mind after the visit of US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu.
“Donald Lu has visited Bangladesh. BNP is out of ind for it. They tried hard to meet him (Lu). But the US has disappointed them with the statement that they want to carry forward the relationship and deepen it. We also want it,” he said.
While addressing a seminar organised by the Bangladesh Mofoshol Sangbadik Society and Saptahik Joy Bangla at the Jatiya Press Club, the minister made the remarks.
The minister further said, “The sky for BNP is being smaller for hatching conspiracy against the state. If BNP follows the same path, they will be lost one day. We don’t want to see BNP weaker.”
“We want that BNP will be stronger and take responsibility as a strong opposition.
A strong opposition political party is necessary for consolidating democracy,” he added.
Meanwhile, during the three-day visit of Donald Lu, he met a number of stakeholders, including ministers, government officials, and members of civil society.
In every meeting, he expressed that the US wants to go forward with Bangladesh in the upcoming days with more engagement on various issues.
He, however, raised concerns about the payment of the US investors who are failing to carry the profits due to the dollar crisis in Bangladesh. He said this while talking to the Prime Minister’s adviser, Salman F. Rahman.
While meeting with Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, he stated that the US government wanted to work with Bangladesh on positive issues.
But Lu also reminded us that Bangladesh still has some hard issues, including RAB’s sanctions, the labour code, corruption, and the accountability of the government and government officials.
The Assistant Secretary said that the US government wanted to support Bangladesh in combating corruption and other issues in the upcoming days.
In his conversation with Lu, the Foreign Minister told the journalists on Wednesday that their discussion did not cover issues like the parliamentary election or the human rights situation in Bangladesh.
Lu, however, told the media “Last year, there was a lot of tension between us and Bangladesh. The US worked very hard to promote free, fair, and nonviolent elections, and it caused tension.
This is common in our relationship. We want to look forward, not back.”
With such a statement, the ruling Awami League leaders and ministers are saying that all the efforts of the BNP have been disappointed through the statement of Donald Lu.
Lu, however, did not say that their position regarding free and fair elections has been changed, and he also did not say anything to the media that the visa policy for Bangladesh has been changed.