United News of Bangladesh

The government has withdrawn Bangladesh High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (UK), Abida Islam, accusing her of not serving the interests of the Bangladeshi community and of keeping the community divided through her actions. "The good news is that High Commissioner Abida Islam has been withdrawn. She has been removed from her post," Prime Minister’s Adviser on Foreign Affairs, Humaiun Kobir, who is currently visiting London, told reporters on Saturday. He claimed that Abida Islam did not serve the interests of the community. Abida Islam has kept the High Commission in London Awami League-aligned, Adviser Kobir also said. UNGA Presidency: UK to give due consideration to Bangladesh’s candidature Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman is also visiting London to attend the 26th Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting (CFAMM) at Lancaster House (Scheduled for March), an event that is also being viewed as an opportunity for Bangladesh to seek broader support for its candidature for the Presidency of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). Prime Minister’s Adviser on Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir is accompanying the foreign minister. High Commissioner Abida Islam officially assumed office as High Commissioner Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of Bangladesh to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on 27 January 2025. A career diplomat, High Commissioner Islam has "significantly contributed" to strengthening Bangladesh's foreign relations, particularly with Southeast Asia, the Americas, and on the international stage, according to her profile. Her efforts have "notably enhanced" Bangladesh's diplomatic, economic, and cultural ties with various countries. Abida Islam has held key diplomatic positions in several international postings, including in the Bangladesh Missions in London (2001-2004), Colombo (2004-2006), and Brussels (2009-2012), Deputy High Commissioner, Bangladesh High Commission, Kolkata, India (2012–2014). As the first female Deputy High Commissioner and Head of Mission in Kolkata, Ambassador Islam was "instrumental in strengthening" Bangladesh's ties with the West Bengal region of India, according to her profile. In her capacity as Director General, Ambassador Islam oversaw two significant wings within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: the International Organisations Wing (2014-2015) and the Americas Area (2015-2017). During her tenure as Ambassador to South Korea, Ambassador Islam worked to improve Bangladesh-South Korea relations, particularly in trade, investment, and cultural exchange.

The United Kingdom (UK) has recognized Bangladesh’s role as a "critical stability provider" in the region, and its particular relevance in the context of the UK’s integrated foreign, trade, development and security policy review with focus on the Indo-Pacific.  Bangladesh and the UK agreed to remain engaged on a durable solution to the Rohingya crisis, together with relevant regional and international actors. The two countries discussed the bilateral, regional and global issues at the 4th Strategic Dialogue held in London on Thursday.  Both delegations exchanged views on the evolving situation in Afghanistan. Read: FM reiterates call for removing Bangladesh from UK's Covid red list Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen led the Bangladesh delegation at the talks while his British counterpart Sir Philip Barton, Permanent Under-Secretary of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) led the UK side. The Bangladesh Foreign Secretary urged the UK to review the current travel restrictions on Bangladesh as a matter of priority, considering the steady improvement in the Covid-19 infection and vaccination rates.  The two sides agreed to further scale up cooperation in genome sequencing of the testing samples through relevant Bangladesh agencies. Bangladesh and the United Kingdom reaffirmed their historic and multidimensional ties at the 4th Strategic Dialogue. “Bangladesh at 50 and the UK post-Brexit have the opportunity to further energize our bilateral relations in line with our efforts at resetting our foreign policy pursuit towards deeper strategic engagement with key international partners”, said Masud Momen.  Barton underlined the importance of the two democracies engaging with each other on a range of bilateral, regional and global issues.  The two sides recalled the founding of the bilateral relations during Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s visit to London on January 8, 1972 on his way to the newly independent Bangladesh, when he was received by the British Prime Minister Edward Heath.

The government has procured five C-130J aircrafts from the United Kingdom (UK) as part of its efforts to modernise Bangladesh Air Force (BAF).

State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak has invited the entrepreneurs of the United Kingdom to take advantage of Bangladesh's thriving IT sector, which has become the most attractive destination for investment.

The United Kingdom (UK) sees a real opportunity to do more on trade, development and other areas in the longer term with Bangladesh as the UK formally leaves the European Union (EU) on Friday.