Foreign-Affairs
Gandhi’s philosophy of truth, humanism, non-violence underscored
Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma on Monday visited the Gandhi Ashram in Noakhali and paid rich tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his 75th death anniversary.
The Ashram commemorates Bapu’s “Peace Mission” to Noakhali in 1946 and his message of non-violence and communal harmony.
The High Commissioner also participated in a discussion titled “The Relevance of Mahatma Gandhi in the Contemporary World” organized by the Gandhi Ashram Trust.
Members of the trust, local political leaders, representatives of local administration as well as civil society and academia joined the interaction.
High Commissioner Verma underlined the guiding light of Gandhiji’s philosophy of truth, humanism and non-violence in showing them the path to deal with today’s global menace of extremism and terrorism.
He also emphasised Gandhi’s belief in harmony with nature, his determination for the empowerment of the poorest and his message of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” that inspires the motto of “One Earth, One Family, One Future” adopted by India for its G20 Presidency.
2 vessels carrying Rooppur power plant consignments dock at Mongla Port
Two vessels with consignments for the Rooppur Power Plant (NPP) in Pabna have arrived at Mongla port.
The ships-- ‘MV Anka Sun’ and ‘MV Sapodilla’ carrying goods weighing 1400.42 MT and 518.42 MT respectively docked at the port’s jetty no 7 and 8 on Sunday evening, Mongla Port Authority (MPA) Harbor Master Captain Shaheen Majid said.
Read more: Return of Russian vessel carrying consignment for Rooppur won’t delay project work: Minister
The unloading of goods from the ships started on Sunday night, he added.
Liberian flag carrier MV Sapodilla left St. Petersburg Port of Russia for Mongla Port and docked at the jetty no 8 of the port on Sunday evening.
Another ship, MV Anka Sun left Russian Novorossiysk Sea Port on December 26 docked at the jetty no-7 of Mongla port at the same time.
The goods will be taken to the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant by road, said Sadhan Kumar Chakraborty, local shipping agent of MV Anka Sun.
Earlier on January 22, Panama flag carrier Liberty Harvest and Russian flag carrier MV Kamilia carrying goods for the nuke plant docked at the port.
Read more: Shipments for Rooppur plant and Bangabandhu Rail Bridge arrive at Mongla port
Sanctioned Russian ship Sparta III (Ursa Major) was scheduled to dock at Mongla port in the southwestern part of the country at the end of December last year and unload cargo destined for the Rooppur NPP .
But the authorities denied the ship permission to dock at the port after officials got a letter from the US Embassy in Dhaka saying that the ship was on a list of Russian ships sanctioned by the US.
On January 22, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said Bangladesh will not accept those Russian ships which are under sanctions.
Ambassador Lee visits South Korea-supported innovative ICT-integrated pilot classroom in Dhaka
South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Lee Sunday visited the Government Laboratory High School in the capital, where an innovative ICT-integrated classroom opened in 2019 with the support of the South Korean government.
In his speech to the students, Ambassador Lee said: "Education has been a major driving force in Korea's rapid economic growth. Korea will continue to help improve Bangladesh's education services so that it can build a brighter future with talented students."
The Korean government helped establish innovative ICT-integrated classrooms in which students can use state-of-art technology to maximise the efficiency of their study at the Government Laboratory High School and Government Mohammadpur Model School and College in Dhaka in 2019.
Read more: South Korean envoy Lee for strengthening infrastructure cooperation with Bangladesh
Bangladesh makes huge progress in last 20 years: UK
British High Commission Dhaka’s Development Director Matt Cannell has said the government of Bangladesh has made huge development over the last twenty years.
“The UK has a strong and vibrant partnership with the government of Bangladesh in a range of areas, including diplomacy, trade and development,” Cannell said.
He said they are increasing their work to help end preventable deaths of mothers and newborn children in 11 countries around the world, including here in Bangladesh.
“I would like to particularly applaud the work of newly trained midwives in improving maternal and newborn health care,” Cannell said.
Head of Human Development Department of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in the UK Chris Carter said Bangladesh is rightly applauded for its family planning and immunization programmes, and the government’s commitment to driving down maternal and child deaths, such as the Bangladesh Every Newborn Action Plan.
“We hope to do more to help build on these efforts. It has been incredible to see the beginning of another Bangladesh success story to develop a new icddr.b alternative formula for Ready-to-use Therapeutic Food (RUTF),” Carter said.
The British High Commission Dhaka recently co-hosted a roundtable with the government of Bangladesh and other development partners to discuss how to step up efforts to end preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children in Bangladesh.
Director General of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Prof. Dr. Abul Bashar Mohammed Khurshid Alam attended the roundtable as the chief guest.
Chris Carter set out how the UK plans to work closely with the government and partners to sustain and build on Bangladesh’s progress on ending preventable deaths.
This includes working on quality, affordable health services and also addressing underlying issues, such as poor nutrition.
The roundtable included an initial consultation about how to tackle the remaining issues that cause preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children in Bangladesh.
This will help to inform the UK’s approach and identify areas where the UK, the government of Bangladesh and other partners can intensify their collaboration, said the British High Commission in Dhaka on Sunday.
Bangladesh will have to maintain good relations with US, India and China: Momen
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Sunday said Bangladesh will continue to maintain a balanced foreign policy – noting the importance of the country’s geostrategic location.
“My challenge is – there are three countries – the United States, India and China. These are powerful countries. I have to maintain the relationship with these three countries in such a way so that we can have an improved relationship with each country,” he said.
The minister was speaking as the chief guest at a citizens’ dialogue on Bangladesh’s achievements, opportunities and challenges. Bangladesh Study Group hosted the dialogue at Jatiya Press Club.
Read More: Mission in London aims to guide remittance flows through official channels
Momen said Bangladesh cannot ignore any country and reiterated that it is maintaining a balanced role in regards to ties with India and China. “We need to move ahead maintaining a balance with them.”
The Foreign Minister said Bangladesh has become a center of interest due to its important geostrategic location. He thinks the future world will be an Asian-led world. Asia is on track to top 50 percent of global GDP by 2040 and drive 40 percent of the world’s consumption, representing a real shift in the world’s center of gravity.
The foreign minister also said that the USA is a “major power” and Bangladesh will have to pursue good relations with the United States. “You will be happy to know that we have developed a very good relationship with India.”
He said Bangladesh is going through a “golden chapter” in terms of its relations with India and the trade relations between the two countries are also on the rise.
Momen thanked the Indian government for demonstrating its respect for Bangladesh through invites to all the meetings and Summit of the G20.
The Foreign Minister is scheduled to attend the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting – to be held in New Delhi, India on March 1 and 2.
Momen said it is not so easy to have equally good relations with all the major powers but Bangladesh is lucky to manage it comfortably as there is a “great and pragmatic leader” like Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The foreign minister also highlighted Bangladesh’s friendly relations with Russia, the European Union and the countries in the Middle-East including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Momen said Bangladesh has three major resources: human resources, fertile land and water.“We will be able to achieve the goal of ‘Sonar Bangla’ if these three resources are properly utilised,” he said.
Read More: Govt working to consolidate relations with neighbours: State Minister
Appreciating Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s leadership, Momen said Bangladesh’s dignity has been boosted globally through her development efforts.The foreign minister said Bangladesh is now considered a model for economic development.
Momen said peace and stability are very important to continue the development journey. “We don’t want to hurt peace and stability. Even, we are promoting peace and stability in the region,” he said, adding that those countries are doing very well economically where peace and stability are ensured.
State Minister for Planning Dr Shamsul Alam spoke as special guest at the discussion chaired by Bangladesh Study Trust Chairman and former Vice Chancellor of National University Prof. Dr. Harun-or-Rashid.
Dhaka University International Relations Department Prof ASM Ali Ashraf presented a keynote paper while Bangladesh Study Trust General Secretary TH M Jahangir delivered welcome remarks.
Mission in London aims to guide remittance flows through official channels
The Bangladesh High Commission in London has taken a special initiative to increase the flow of remittances from the UK and Ireland through official channels.
A views-exchange meeting ‘Opportunities for Greater Remittance Flows from the UK and Ireland’ was organised by the high commission with representatives of money exchange houses of the UK to this end on Friday (local time).
Urging British-Bangladeshis to send remittances legally, Bangladesh High Commissioner Saida Muna Tasneem said the government led by Sheikh Hasina announced a 2.5 percent incentive against remittances for the expatriates to encourage them to send the money through valid channels.
Read more: Digital infrastructure key to attracting more remittance through legal channels, speakers say
She also consulted the money exchange houses to take special initiatives to boost the flows of remittance.
A remittance fair will be organised in east London to increase awareness about the official channels to send remittance, she said.
The high commissioner said the representatives of the money exchange houses will be trained about the means by which they can send the remittances at a low charge by using several apps.
Apart from this, community televisions, newspapers and social media will be engaged in escalating the awareness about the sending of money through valid channels, she said.
The money exchange representatives tabled several problems and proposals during the meeting, which weren't specified in the high commission's press release.
The high commissioner however is said to have assured them of overcoming all the hurdles.
Read more: Mobile financial service providers can bring remittance directly: Bangladesh Bank
FM likely to visit New Delhi March 1-2
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen is likely to attend the G20 foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi during March 1-2.
India, holding G20 presidency, has invited Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as guest countries to its meetings and summit, according to the Ministry of External Affairs, India.
Under its presidency, India is expected to host over 200 G20 meetings across the country this year.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been invited to attend the 18th G20 Heads of State and Government Summit which will take place during September 9-10 this year in New Delhi.
Hasina paid a state visit to India from September 5 to 8 last year at the invitation of her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
Read more: FM to visit UAE from Feb 10-13 to attend series of events
Apart from the G20 leaders, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi, Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Oman Head of State Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan have been invited to the G20 Summit.
Meanwhile, Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra is likely to be in Dhaka in the third week of February to have bilateral talks with his Bangladesh counterpart Masud Bin Momen, said a diplomatic source.
Kwatra assumed charge as foreign secretary on May 1 last year.
MoFA hosts 'Pitha Utsab'
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) on Saturday hosted a "Pitha Utsab" at state guesthouse Jamuna, giving the foreigners an opportunity to taste delicious homemade varieties of pithas (rice cakes).
"Bangladesh is known for varieties of pithas. By and large, they are very tasty. They are sweet, sour and salty," said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen while speaking at the festival.
Read more:Festivals like Pitha Utsab needs to be spread all over Bangladesh: KM Khalid
Politicians, diplomats stationed in Dhaka, former Bangladesh ambassadors, senior officials of MoFA and journalists were present.
Bangladesh strongly condemns burning of Holy Quran in Denmark
Bangladesh has strongly condemned yet another case of burning the Holy Quran by a far-right activist in Europe — this time in Copenhagen, Denmark yesterday.
Bangladesh again expressed grave concern over such inciting act of insulting the sacred values and religious symbols of Muslims, according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Also Read: Bangladesh condemns desecration of the Holy Quran by far-right activist in The Hague
Bangladesh urged all concerned to refrain from such unwarranted provocations and Islamophobia for the sake of harmony and peaceful coexistence.
High Commissioner Golam Sarwar meets Malaysian home minister
Bangladesh High Commissioner to Malaysia Md Golam Sarwar on Wednesday met with Malaysian Home Affairs Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and discussed various issues of mutual interest.
In the meeting, the newly appointed Home Minister of Malaysia expressed his interest in his upcoming visit to Bangladesh.
The High Commissioner welcomed his crucial visit to Bangladesh and discussed various aspects of the visit, according to the Bangladesh High Commission in Kuala Lumpur.
As it is his first foreign visit after taking charge as Home Minister, it is significant for both countries, sources added.
They also discussed recruiting more manpower from Bangladesh in a short time at a low cost.
High commissioner Golam Sarwar requested the Home Minister of Malaysia to legalise the undocumented Bangladeshi expatriates on easy terms under the recalibration programme.
The Malaysian home minister assured the high commissioner that they would look into the matter, according to the High Commission.