Bangladesh looks to work closely with new USA govt

Bangladesh Ambassador to the United States Asad Alam Siam will represent the Bangladesh government at the swearing-in ceremony of President-elect Donald J Trump on January 20, 2025, sources in Dhaka and Washington said.

The interim government of  Prof Muhammad Yunus will work hard and meticulously to develop and regroup the relations with the new US government under Donald J Trump.

In the changed environment, Bangladesh will have to engage deeply with US congressmen and US Senators, USA lobbyists and members of civil society and media to counter Indian narratives, sources in Dhaka and Washington.

The Indian community is very strong in the USA  and the Indian politicians and members of the civil society and media are spreading negative propaganda against Bangladesh after the ungracious departure of former dictator Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will represent the Indian government and Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Rizwan Saeed Sheikh will represent the Pakistan government respectively.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian politicians are concerned over the protection of minorities and Indian investment and establishments in Bangladesh after dictator Sheikh Hasina was ousted through a massive student movement and sought the intervention of the US government in the issues, sources said.

The Indian-American diaspora in the USA are very strong that USA politicians –both Democratic and Republican- can’t overlook.     

Bangladesh Ambassador to the United States Asad Alam Siam is expected to highlight the loss of some 2000 lives and some 20,000 injured in recent revolution in movement against the dictator Sheikh Hasina, demolition of democracy and human rights values and harassment of opposition political parties and thousands of leaders workers during 2009-2024 tenure, sources said.

Asad Alam Siam Chief Adviser is expected to highlight the path towards democracy, restoration of human rights, establishment of liberal society, US investment and political and economic support with the new US government …

The recent visit of a high-profile US delegation to Bangladesh and successfully holding meetings with the head of the interim government and different stakeholders concerned primarily shows Washington's commitment to Dhaka to reach the bilateral relations to a new height at the political and economic levels, said diplomats, policy makers and business leaders.

The relations between the USA and Bangladesh suffered heavily during the previous regime when the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina totally overlooked Washington’s prescription of transparent, credible and reliable parliament election, upholding human and labour rights and healthy relations among the political parties.

Sources in Dhaka and Washington said USA’s political commitment to Bangladesh is very crucial and important as India, the neighboring country, has been deeply upset by the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, its most reliable ally and partner in the region.

Bangladesh suffered heavily after the independence when Washington-Dhaka relations reached a low in the post-cold war era leading to starvation in 1974. The history says that during British rule, starvation caused deaths of several lakh people in undivided Bengal and after that in post-independent Bangladesh, several lakh Bangladeshis also lost their lives in starvation.

Sources however said that Bangladesh is unlikely to get back GSP privilege in the USA market or new and major USA investment in Bangladesh is unlikely to come in the short term unless necessary political and economic reforms are carried out by the interim government.

Major General (retd)  Nayeem Ashfaque Chowdhury while talking to the Dazzling Dawn said that former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s claim of US interest in setting up a military in Saint Martin's island is baseless. He said the US has military bases in KSA, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, South Korea, Japan and the Philippines that can cover the USA interest in the whole Indian ocean. The existing location and environment in Saint Martin's Island are not conducive to setting up a military base, other Bangladesh would have set up its military base in the island. Even the neighbouring country will not allow the setting up of a US military in Saint Martin's Island.

To a question, a former senior Bangladesh diplomat who worked in Washington DC said that the USA directly gives cash support to Israel and Egypt in the world.   Bangladesh has been experiencing dollar crisis since 2021 as the previous Awami League leaders in convenience with some businessmen siphoned off billions of US dollars creating economic crisis in Bangladesh …..

The United States of America is a trusted development partner of Bangladesh since 1972. Under an umbrella agreement titled "Economic Technical and Related Assistance" which was signed in 1974, USA has contributed more than $8 billion till today in different sectors like democracy and governance; food security; health and education; global climate change.

Former Bangladesh Ambassador to the USA M Humayun Kabir said in an interview with the daily  that the development of the US-Bangladesh relations, in my opinion, is positive. The reason is that, at this moment, our needs and their commitment to cooperation are aligned, which brings us a sense of relief…..

Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar will represent the Indian government at the swearing-in ceremony of President-elect Donald J Trump, on January 20, on the invitation of the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

Foreign Ministers from Quad partner countries, Japan and Australia, also confirmed that they had been invited and would attend the ceremony.

“During the visit, EAM (Jaishankar) will also have meetings with representatives of the incoming administration, as also some other dignitaries visiting the US on that occasion,” a press release issued by the MEA  stated.

Trump has invited Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and ambassador Kevin Rudd to attend his 2025 Inauguration Day, the Australian media reported.

“I am honoured to be invited to attend President Donald Trump’s inauguration. It is a demonstration of the steadfast alliance between Australia and the US,” Wong said in a statement.

Japanese Foreign Minister, Takeshi Iwaya, said at a talk show on public broadcaster NHK on Sunday that he planned to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration as US President. “We aim to build a relationship of trust with the Trump administration,” Iwaya said.

While Trump reportedly invited Chinese President Xi Jinping for the ceremony, he is not attending and is expected to send a high-level envoy instead.

Other world leaders who reportedly received invitations to attend Trump’s swearing-in ceremony include Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Argentinian President Javier Milei, El Salvador President Nayib Bukele and Hungarian President Viktor Orban.

Former Brazilian President, Jair Bolsonaro said earlier this week that he too had been invited to Trump’s inauguration ceremony and had sought the return of his passport that was confiscated after his alleged coup attempt following electoral defeat in 2022.

Meanwhile, with Donald Trump set to begin his second term in the White House, Pakistan’s political and diplomatic machinery in the United States is ramping up efforts to engage with the new Congress and recalibrate its approach to Washington’s shifting dynamics.

With the new Congress sworn recently and set to resume routine proceedings after Trump’s inauguration on Jan 20, both the Pakistan embassy and supporters of Imran Khan’s PTI are gearing up for strategic lobbying.

These efforts come at a critical juncture, as US-Pakistan relations face renewed scrutiny amidst Islamabad’s internal political turmoil, and a shifting global landscape.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, returned to Washington soon after a 20-day visit to Islamabad, during which he attended consultations and a conference of key Pakistani envoys.

According to embassy officials, the ambassador has already met more than 20 US lawmakers since the November midterm elections and is set to resume these engagements promptly.

“We aim to promote Pakistan and its interests,” an embassy official said, emphasising that their outreach is not tied to any particular political group.

Ambassador Sheikh, however, maintained a neutral stance when asked about PTI’s efforts to lobby Congress, noting, “We respect differences of opinion, but individual views should not negatively influence relations between our two countries.”

He further urged the Pakistani diaspora to prioritise US-Pakistan relations over domestic politics, stating, “Internal politics should not be allowed to impact Pakistan’s relations with other nations. While we cannot control individual actions, we can appeal to them to act as responsible promoters of the US-Pakistan partnership.”