“If we don’t want to see a recurrence of the Rohingya crisis, we should hold the perpetrators accountable,” Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen told the NAM ministers in Baku on Wednesday.
The meeting of the ministers was held ahead of the 18th Summit of Heads of State and Government of NAM (Non-Aligned Movement).
The Foreign Minister expressed “dissatisfaction” over Myanmar’s role in the process of solving the Rohingya crisis.
He raised the issue that Myanmar has not yet taken back any of the Rohingyas till date despite making commitments to ensure conducive environment in Northern Rakhine State and to take back the displaced people.
Dr Momen urged the international community, particularly the Asean neighbours of Myanmar, to remain engaged with Myanmar to reach a solution to this crisis.
He also emphasised ensuring the accountability of the perpetrators of this crisis and expressed the hope to solve the crisis through dialogue and discussions.
Bangladesh has been hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas and most of them entered Cox’s Bazar since August 25, 2017 amid military crackdown on them in Rakhine State.
The Foreign Minister is attending the two-day preparatory ministerial meeting of the 18th NAM Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina leaves here for Baku on Thursday on a four-day official visit to Azerbaijan to attend the 18th Summit of NAM.
The preparatory ministerial meeting will end on Thursday while the two-day NAM Summit, a forum of 120 developing countries, will be held at Baku Congress Centre on October 25-26.
At the ministerial meeting, Dr Momen said Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman decided to join the Movement in 1973 in its Algiers’ Summit” recognising the importance of NAM.
Bangladesh has also been a strong believer in the goals of the Movement, said the Foreign Minister.
Dr Momen highlighted how Bangladesh’s policy closely aligns with the NAM principles. Besides, he emphasised the importance of ‘Bandung Principles’ to establish a prosperous world.
He focused on the significance of South-South Cooperation for achieving SDGs.
Mentioning Bangladesh’s development trajectory, a miracle, the Foreign Minister highlighted Bangladesh’s economic development under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
He also mentioned the leading role of Bangladesh in peacekeeping and peacebuilding to establish a sustainable world of peace and stability.
On the sidelines of the preparatory ministerial meeting, the Foreign Minister also participated in an event titled “Promoting Peace and Sustainable Development through South-South and Triangular Cooperation”.
He mentioned the concept of a South-South Ministers’ Forum and emphasized South-South Cooperation and triangular cooperation.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Mahmud Mammad-Guliyev also attended the opening session of the event.