US Special Envoy for South and Central Asia Sergio Gor on Saturday said “great opportunities” exist between Bangladesh and the United States and the two countries can achieve real results by working together, stressing that the United States holds Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in the highest regard.

“The United States holds the Prime Minister in the highest regard….. The message that we want to make sure gets out there between our two sides is that there's incredible potential,” he told reporters after the meeting with the Prime Minister.

Gor who paid a “familiarisation and exploratory” visit to Bangladesh from July 30 to August 1, laid emphasis on strengthening economic cooperation and enhancing partnership between the two countries.

He discussed the “great opportunities” between the US and Bangladesh to strengthen economic cooperation and enhance our partnership.

Gor said this is a priority for the United States, and working together, they can achieve real results. "We have a lot of potential, as we discussed," he said.

Gor noted that Washington has already taken steps to encourage closer engagement with Bangladesh, including lowering its travel advisory to promote both tourism and investment.

"We have lowered our travel advisory for Bangladesh, encouraging people to come here, both as tourists but also as an investment climate," he said.

Gor also announced that a delegation of US companies is scheduled to visit Bangladesh next week to explore investment opportunities.

"Just next week, we're going to have a delegation visiting of US companies that are looking to invest in Bangladesh," he said.

Highlighting the prospects for expanded economic cooperation, Gor said the United States and Bangladesh could work more closely in key sectors, including pharmaceuticals and information technology.

"Whether that relates to the pharma industry, whether that relates to IT, there's a lot that the United States and Bangladesh can do together," he said.

He added that both sides are committed to building on the momentum and elevating bilateral cooperation.

"We look forward to building on that and taking it to the next level," Gor said, describing his discussion with the Prime Minister as "a very good meeting."

Upon completion of Gor’s visit, the US Embassy in Dhaka said both sides discussed the “political and economic dynamics” shaping Bangladesh-US relations. “The visit highlighted the breadth and depth of the US-Bangladesh relationship.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the ‘courtesy’ meeting held at the Prime Minister's Office in Tejgaon as “warm and cordial”.

The Special Envoy said the US government has strong confidence in the Prime Minister's leadership and noted that stability has returned to Bangladesh under the Prime Minister's leadership, said the MoFA.

The meeting also included discussions on the Rohingya crisis. The Special Envoy shared his observations from his visit to the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar the previous day.

He highly praised the Government and people of Bangladesh for providing shelter to the Rohingya refugees and for continuing humanitarian assistance.

The Special Envoy emphasised the importance of achieving a sustainable and political solution to the Rohingya crisis.

The two sides also agreed to work together on the resumption of testing activities in Bangladesh in cooperation with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman; Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir; State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam; Prime Minister's Advisers Rehan Asif Asad and Mahdi Amin; Bangladesh's Ambassador to Washington Tarek Md Ariful Islam; US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent T Christensen; and other senior officials were present.

The US Special Envoy on Friday urged international partners to step up their support for the Rohingya camp in Cox’s Bazar, which is home to more than one million Rohingyas sheltered by Bangladesh.

"The United States has supported this camp and urges our partners around the world to increase their contributions," said Gor while visiting the Rohingya camp in Cox’s Bazar.

"Today (Friday), I visited Rohingya refugee communities in Cox’s Bazar with Ambassador Christensen. This is the largest refugee camp in the world, hosting over one million refugees," said the US Special Envoy.

He visited a Rohingya camp in Ukhiya of Cox's Bazar, leading a 14-member high-level delegation.

According to the Office of the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC), the delegation visited Camp-4, where they observed activities of the World Food Programme (WFP), including its humanitarian assistance operations for the displaced Rohingyas.

The US Special Envoy met Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman on Thursday evening.

"It was great to meet Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman during my first visit to Bangladesh and discuss working together to strengthen the US-Bangladesh relationship. Lots of positive developments," Gor said on Thursday night.

Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur said bilateral relations between Bangladesh and the United States are moving in a very positive direction, noting that they will build on the achievements they have made so far.

"Our engagement with the US is not limited to one meeting. We remain engaged on all aspects and at all levels, and the relationship is moving forward," he told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday night after his meeting with Gor at the State Guest House Padma.

The United States has updated its travel advisory for Bangladesh, and the improvement in the advisory "reflects growing US confidence" in Bangladesh's overall security environment and stability, Dhaka said on Thursday night.

The overall travel advisory has been lowered from Level 3 (Reconsider Travel) to Level 2 (Exercise Increased Caution), reflecting that Bangladesh is safer for travel, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said.

The positive development follows the "productive" bilateral meeting held in Dhaka between Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur and Gor.

Immediately after the meeting, Gor conveyed the development to the Foreign Minister in a text message, the Ministry said.

Over the past six months, under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, the present government has achieved visible progress in strengthening law and order across the country, Dhaka said.

The decision also underscores the positive trajectory of the longstanding partnership between Bangladesh and the United States.

The government of Bangladesh views the improvement as recognition of its sustained efforts to ensure security, stability, and an enabling environment for international travel, trade, investment, and people-to-people connectivity.