Diplomats representing 27 European countries, stationed in Dhaka and New Delhi, will together meet Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus on December 9. Spokesperson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Director General (Public Diplomacy wing) Mohammad Rafiqul Alam shared the updates during the weekly briefing on Thursday. Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh Michael Miller will join with 27 diplomats. Responding to a question, he said both sides will explore new areas of cooperation, in addition to discussion on Rohingya crisis, GSP+ facilities in the post-LDC era and partnership and cooperation pact with Bangladesh. The European Union (EU’s) trade relations with Bangladesh are based on unilateral trade preferences granted by the EU since 2001 under the GSP Everything but Arms (EBA) duty-free, quota-free market access arrangement for the LDCs. Read: Govt to brief diplomats on minority issues today This is the first time when 27 ambassadors from the European Union will come together to discuss with the government. The reason for this meeting is to express the EU's support and to develop high-level cooperation in the economic field. Twenty ambassadors from 20 European countries are based in New Delhi, and seven ambassadors are based in Dhaka.

The government on Monday will brief diplomats stationed in Dhaka on current issues, especially on the minorities. "It's mainly on minority issues," a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told UNB. Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain will brief the diplomats at state guesthouse Padma in the afternoon. Read: Govt to brief diplomats Wednesday; Rohingya situation on focus He will talk to the media around 4pm after the diplomatic briefing. Following the diplomatic briefing, the adviser will talk with the media.

The government has said that Bangladesh’s democratic polity has reached a stage where smooth and peaceful transition of power between elected governments has been ensured without any undemocratic arrangement. "Democracies have weaknesses, but they attain maturity only through practicing democracy," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a briefing note shared with diplomats stationed in Dhaka on Tuesday. Although many leaders and activists of BNP were keen to participate, it is regrettable that its top leadership decided otherwise on the pretext of their unconstitutional demand for the provision of a caretaker government, the ministry conveyed to diplomats. In 2011, Supreme Court of Bangladesh declared the unelected caretaker provision "ultra vires" (any deed performed beyond the scope of legal authority) and void as it conflicts with the spirit of democracy. Read more: Australia urges Bangladesh govt to prioritise strengthening its democratic institutions The Election Commission repeatedly called upon BNP to participate, and the EC was even willing to revise the election schedule if BNP joined. BNP made this "irrational demand" as its principal political capital and chose to destroy the lives and properties of people, holding them hostage, said the government. The state of horrific violence that BNP and its allies unleashed throughout the country is only a vivid reminder of their drills in 2001, 2013, 2014 and 2018, the ministry of foreign affairs said. Since October 28, 2023, they set ablaze nearly a thousand public and private vehicles and over 200 establishments including police hospital premises and ambulances, vandalized nearly a thousand vehicles and many establishments including the residences of Chief Justice and other judges, caused injury to around 1,500 police personnel and around 500 civilians, attacked reporters and camera personnel, killed 24 individuals including two police personnel – one of them mercilessly beaten to death in broad daylight, the foreign ministry observed. "They sabotaged our railway system, leading to tragic incidents claiming five precious lives including burning a mother and her 3-year-old son alive and leaving many others severely injured," reads the briefing note. In the lead-up to the election, BNP "geared up its violence" in its efforts to spread fear and terror. On the preceding day of the elections, they carried out arson attacks on polling centres with a view to intimidating the voters, the ministry conveyed to the diplomats. Read more: Foreign friends continue to send congratulations to PM Hasina on her election win BNP called for a 48-hour nationwide strike to cut off the communication system and obstruct voters from traveling to their constituencies to cast their votes, it said. The Benapole Express train was set on fire, killing four passengers, causing severe injuries to many, and burning the passenger train to ashes, it said. The 12th Parliamentary Election of Bangladesh were held on January 7 in a "free, fair, impartial and transparent" manner with spontaneous participation of the voters. The people of Bangladesh as well as the international community have witnessed that the Bangladesh Election Commission, an independent and empowered constitutional body, supported by the incumbent government, can effectively conduct free, fair and credible elections, the ministry said. The 2024 polls have set a new milestone in the history of the journey of parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh, it said. People of Bangladesh have demonstrated their unyielding resolve to a rule-based democratic system and peace, progress and stability through their active participation, the foreign ministry said. "The incumbent government also manifested its unprecedented political commitment to take forward the democratic process, uphold the constitutional mandate, and ensure people’s right to vote." Despite the calls to boycott, violence and persistent intimidation by the BNP, the people of Bangladesh reinforced their commitment to and aspiration for a peaceful and ‘Smart Bangladesh’ vision, said the government. "This is a new paradigm in Bangladesh’s electoral history within the constitutional framework, based on trust, credibility, and impartiality in the election process in line with people’s aspirations," it said. The Indian High Commission's representative, British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas, European Union Ambassador to Bangladesh Charles Whiteley, Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen, Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexander Mantytsky, UN Resident Coordinator in Dhaka Gwyn Lewis, and high commissioners and ambassadors from various other countries were present at the "meet and greet" where Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen spoke briefly. Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen was also present. Read more: Canada disappointed that Bangladesh’s electoral process has ‘fallen short of’ democratic principles

The government of Bangladesh will brief diplomats stationed in Dhaka, representatives of UN agencies and international organizations on the current situation in Bangladesh this afternoon (October 30, 2023). Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen will brief the diplomats at state guesthouse Jamuna at 4 pm. Senior Cabinet members and officials of the government will attend the briefing. Read more: EU, its Member States “deeply saddened” to see loss of life, violence in Dhaka

Canada has recalled 41 of its diplomats from India after the Indian government said it would revoke their diplomatic immunity, the foreign minister said Thursday, in an escalation of their dispute over the slaying of a Sikh separatist in Canada. The moves come after Canada's allegations that India may have been involved in the June killing of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar in suburban Vancouver. India has accused Canada of harboring separatists and "terrorists," but dismissed the allegation of its involvement in the killing as "absurd" and has taken diplomatic steps to express its anger over the accusation. Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said Thursday that 41 of Canada's 62 diplomats in India have been removed, along with their dependents. Joly said exceptions have been made for 21 Canadian diplomats who will remain in India. India-Canada row: Trudeau speaks with Jordan King and UAE President "Forty-one Canadian diplomats and their 42 dependents were in danger of having their immunity stripped on an arbitrary date and this would put their personal safety at risk," Joly said. "Our diplomats and their families have now left." Joly said removing diplomatic immunity is not only unprecedented but contrary to international law, and said for that reason Canada wouldn't threaten to do the same thing with Indian diplomats. "A unilateral revocation of the diplomatic privilege and immunity is contrary to international law and a clear violation of the Geneva Convention on diplomatic relations. Threatening to do so is unreasonable and escalatory," Joly said. Joly said India's decision will impact the level of services to citizens of both countries. She said Canada is pausing in-person services in Chandigarh, Mumbai and Bangalore. India's Ministry of External Affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had previously called for a reduction in Canadian diplomats in India, saying they outnumbered India's staffing in Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last month that there were "credible allegations" of Indian involvement in the slaying of Nijjar, a 45-year-old Sikh leader who was killed by masked gunmen in June in Surrey, outside Vancouver. Canada is here to cooperate with and support Bangladesh, says its high commissioner For years, India had said that Nijjar, a Canadian citizen born in India, had links to terrorism, an allegation Nijjar denied. India also has canceled visas for Canadians, and Canada has not retaliated for that. India previously expelled a senior Canadian diplomat after Canada expelled a senior Indian diplomat. Trudeau has previously appeared to try to calm the diplomatic clash, telling reporters that Canada is "not looking to provoke or escalate." The allegation of India's involvement in the killing is based in part on surveillance of Indian diplomats in Canada, including intelligence provided by a major ally, a separate Canadian official previously told The Associated Press. The official said that the communications involved Indian officials and diplomats in Canada and that some of the intelligence was provided by a member of the "Five Eyes" intelligence-sharing alliance, which includes the United States, Britain, Australia and New Zealand, in addition to Canada. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The latest expulsions by India have escalated tensions between the countries. Trudeau had frosty encounters with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the recent Group of 20 meeting in New Delhi, and a few days later, Canada canceled a trade mission to India planned for the fall. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has met with India's foreign minister amid the simmering row. A U.S. official said the topic was raised. U.S. officials have acknowledged that the fallout from the allegations could have an impact on relations with India, but have been careful not to cast blame in the killing of Nijjar. Nijjar, a plumber, was also a leader in what remains of a once-strong movement to create an independent Sikh homeland, known as Khalistan. A bloody decade-long Sikh insurgency shook north India in the 1970s and 1980s, until it was crushed in a government crackdown in which thousands of people were killed, including prominent Sikh leaders. US rejects report saying India-Canada dispute is threatening Washington’s ties with Delhi The Khalistan movement has lost much of its political power but still has supporters in the Indian state of Punjab, as well as in the sizable overseas Sikh diaspora. While the active insurgency ended years ago, the Indian government has warned repeatedly that Sikh separatists were trying to make a comeback. Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller noted that in 2022 India was the top country for permanent residents, temporary foreign workers and international students in Canada. Miller said as a result of India's decision to remove immunity Canada's immigration department will be significantly reducing the number of Canadian employees in India. Miller said the lower staff levels will hamper the issuing of visas and permits. Senior Canadian officials said India was firm on the number and rank of Canadian diplomats for whom it would lift diplomatic immunity. India also indicated it would cancel various permits, such as those permitting spouses to work in India and allowing the use of diplomatic plates on cars, officials said. Nelson Wiseman, a political scientist at the University of Toronto, said there would be no point in Canada retaliating over India's latest move. "The expulsions of the Canadian diplomats reveal the thin skin of the Indians; it suggests that they know they are complicit in the murder of a Canadian in Canada," Wiseman said. "They are trying to deflect attention from their lack of cooperation with Canada in the investigation of the murder."

The Indian government has asked Canada to withdraw over 40 of its diplomats from the country, the Financial Times has reported. New Delhi has set a deadline of October 10 for the repatriation, reads the report. Canada has 62 diplomats in India, and earlier, New Delhi had said the total number should be reduced by 41, the report said. Read: Despite dispute, Canada remains committed to its relationship with India: Trudeau India had asked Canada to curtail its diplomatic presence in the country as relations between the two countries plunged to the lowest point following Ottawa's allegations against New Delhi over the killing of a Khalistani separatist on Canadian soil. Read: Blinken meets Indian foreign minister as row between India and Canada simmers However, India has outright rejected the claim, calling it absurd. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar recently said there was a "climate of violence" and an "atmosphere of intimidation" against Indian diplomats in Canada. Read: Intelligence from 'Five Eyes' nations helped Canada link India to Sikh’s killing, US diplomat says

Foreign diplomats Wednesday lauded Bangladesh's progress in women empowerment but lamented that a large number of the women are still out of economic activities. They said a country cannot move forward leaving half its population out of economic activities. The diplomats recommended that the poor and vulnerable women should be provided with opportunities for education, skill development and economic activities. Ambassadors of France, Germany, Canada and Sweden made these observations in two different events – one organised by the Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh (DCAB) at the Jatiya Press Club and the other by the French-German Embassy at its premises in the city – marking International Women's Day. At the DCAB event, Swedish Ambassador Alexander Berg von Linde said digital technology is going to be an important factor in the coming days. "It can open doors for many, but also deprive others." Lots of hatred and sexual abuses are committed through digital media, she said, adding that the authorities must create opportunities for all so they make the best use of the digital space and it is not used for harassing women. "Opportunities for education and digital skills for the poor and vulnerable women must be ensured," Linde said. Canadian High Commissioner Lilly Nicholls said as the media plays a critical role in creating awareness, participation of women in journalism needs to be increased.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday (March 06, 2023) asked Bangladeshi diplomats to play an active role in strengthening economic diplomacy in order to sustain the country’s graduation to the developing status through enhancing trade and export with different countries. “Bangladeshi diplomats working in different countries will have to be active in strengthening economic diplomacy alongside brightening the image of the country,” she said. The premier gave the directive at a regional envoy conference, held at her place of residence in Doha, with participation of Bangladeshi diplomats stationed in the Middle Eastern countries. She said since Bangladesh is going to graduate to a developing country, attention is needed on countries where Bangladesh could enhance its trade and business. Read more: Qatar Foundation Chair Nasser meets PM “You will have to discuss and negotiate with all the countries, so that we can sustain as a developing country, move forward, and can finally graduate to a developed country,” she said.    Sheikh Hasina said once diplomacy was a political issue, and now it is an economic issue. “So, those of us who are working (in different countries) will have to identify trade and business opportunities there so that we can boost our exports and import goods at competitive prices.”   “Identify the places where there is demand for our products and where we have the scope to market our goods,” she added. Referring to the policy of Bangladesh to maintain good relations with all countries, the PM reiterated the cornerstone of the country’s foreign policy is ‘friendship to all, malice towards none.’ Read More: Bangladesh open to Qatar’s investment in energy sector: PM tells Doha Investment Summit The premier said Bangladesh would maintain friendly relations with everyone. But when injustice is done, Bangladesh will definitely speak out while maintaining friendly relations, as it did with Myanmar. “…We gave shelter to the Rohingyas on humanitarian grounds, but we did not engage in conflict with Myanmar. Bangladesh is making diplomatic efforts to send the Rohingyas back to their homeland,” she said. Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen, Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni and Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, among others, were present at the conference. The Prime Minister is now visiting Qatar to attend the Fifth United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries (LDC-5). She arrived in Qatar last Saturday at the invitation of Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The Prime Minister of Bangladesh is scheduled to leave here for Dhaka on Wednesday. Read More: PM Sheikh Hasina arrives in Qatar to join UN conference on LDCs.

Germany said Wednesday that it is expelling two Iranian diplomats over the death sentence imposed in Iran against one of its citizens. Authorities in Iran announced Tuesday that Jamshid Sharmahd, a 67-year-old Iranian-German national and U.S. resident, was sentenced to death after being convicted of terrorist activities. Iran claims Sharmahd is the leader of the armed wing of a group advocating the restoration of the monarchy that was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, but his family say he was merely the spokesman for the opposition group and deny he was involved in any attacks. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said she summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Berlin and informed him that “we will not accept this massive breach of a German citizen’s rights.” Also Read: Ausbildung in Germany for Non-EU Students including Bangladesh “As a consequence the German government has declared two members of the Iranian embassy unwanted persons and asked them to leave Germany at short notice,” she said. “We demand that Iran revokes the death sentence against Jamshid Sharmahd and allows him to have an appeal that is fair and in line with the rule of law.” Baerbock has said that Sharmahd, who lives in Glendora, California, did not have “even the beginning of a fair trial” and that consular access and access to the trial had been repeatedly denied. She has also alleged that he had been arrested “under highly questionable circumstances,” without elaborating. Sharmahd's family accuse Iranian intelligence of abducting him from Dubai in 2020. Also Read: Iran International moves shows to Washington, citing threats The official website of Iran’s judiciary said Sharmahd was convicted of plotting terrorist activities. He was tried in a Revolutionary Court, where proceedings are held behind closed doors and where rights groups say defendants are unable to choose their lawyers or see the evidence against them. The death sentence — which can be appealed — comes against the backdrop of months of anti-government protests in Iran sparked by the death of a 22-year-old woman who was detained by the morality police for allegedly violating the country's strict Islamic dress code. The protesters have called for the overthrow of the country’s ruling clerics. Monarchists based outside Iran support the protests, as do other groups and individuals with different ideologies. Security forces have attacked the demonstrators with live ammunition, bird shot and batons, rights groups say. At least 530 protesters have been killed and nearly 20,000 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group monitoring the unrest. Iranian authorities have blamed the protests on hostile foreign powers, without providing evidence, and have not released official figures for those killed or arrested. Iran has executed four men accused of violence linked to the protests, and activists say at least 16 others have been sentenced to death.

Diplomats are taught one big lesson in training academies – learn to respect national sensitivities in countries of posting. No wonder, the US Consul-General in Kolkata, Melinda Pavek, is found pandal-hopping during Durga Puja in a saree and photographed with folded hands before Goddess Durga. Perhaps, this diplomatic grace is something US Ambassador in Dhaka, Peter Haas, could learn. One would expect him to join senior diplomats in paying homage to Bangladesh’s martyrs on December 14 and 16 – at least to overcome the national guilt and make up for the Nixon-Kissinger backing of the 1971 genocide by Yahya Khan’s Pakistani military junta. Read more: US envoy’s visit to Mayer Dak coordinator’s house won’t hurt ties: Info Minister The US never sounded enthusiastic over Bangladesh’s demand for UN recognition of the 1971 genocide, despite unthinkable casualties and brutalities on record. Former Bangladeshi minister and a renowned cultural personality, Tarana Halim, has recently said that the US and western reluctance over UN recognition of the 1971 genocide, perhaps, stems from considering Pakistan as a “strategic asset” and not intending to upset its military. Be that as it may, many US voices like former Consul General in Dhaka Archer Blood came out strongly to condemn the 1971 genocide and also pull up the Nixon-Kissinger duo for being on “the wrong side of history”. Bangladesh’s friends include renowned Democrat senator Edward Kennedy as well. If Peter Haas was out to win hearts and minds in Bangladesh, the least he could do would be to pay his respects to the martyrs at the memorial. But ironically, not even a single post honouring the martyrs from US embassy’s Facebook page appeared on December 14.   Read more: Human rights are at the center of US foreign policy: US Embassy For a country like US that respects and values merit and talent, the assassination of the brightest minds of Bangladesh should be particularly abhorrent. Just two days before the public surrender on December 16, 1971, the Pakistan army – with active assistance from Jamaat-e-Islami and other local collaborators – abducted and killed more than 1,000 top Bengali academics, writers, cultural personalities, and celebrated professionals to leave the new nation with a brain deficit.  Peter Haas apparently had no time for national mourning on December 14 or Victory Day celebrations on December 16. He, however, found time to visit the house of a BNP activist who had reportedly disappeared. Then, he set out to stir a diplomatic storm by alleging his security had been compromised due to a crowd of justice-seekers whose near and dear ones were executed under BNP founder General Ziaur Rahman’s administration. After Gen Zia’s rise to power – months after the assassination of Father of the Nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, over 1000 armed forces officials, many of whom were freedom fights, were victims of extrajudicial killings during Zia’s violent purges within the military. Broad hints were dropped that Haas’ plan to visit the BNP activist’s home was leaked and that the government had “organized the heckling”.  Read more: US Ambassador visits residence of the coordinator of ‘Mayer Dak’ in city An explanation from the victim families cleared the air about their hurried gathering outside the house the US ambassador was visiting on that morning. Turning out after hearing of the presence of the US ambassador, these victim families – under the platform of ‘Mayer Kanna’ (tears of mothers) – attempted to draw attention to their long pending calls for justice before Haas. They were not terrorists, and ignoring their call was a display of bias. Its role in favour of the Pakistani army that carried out the 1971 genocide and sheltering killers of the country’s founding father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, have done little to improve the US public image in Bangladesh.  The presence of someone as important as the US ambassador is likely to attract attention whenever his convoy moves into a densely populated Dhaka area. Families of victims of disappearance may seek intervention since the US embassy announced that human rights are “at the center” of US foreign policy. Read more: Families of armed forces officers executed during Zia regime seek US ambassador’s intervention for justice If one knows Bangladesh and Bengalis, some cross-shouting is entirely expected. It could also be an effort to pass the blame onto Awami League. Can Haas win hearts and minds in Bangladesh by demonstrating a bias towards a coalition whose last government (2001-06) was seen as responsible for the huge spurt in terrorism? Sukharanjan Dasgupta is a Kolkata-based commentator and author of “Midnight Massacre” on the 15 August 1975 coup.