Ashraf's remarks on Biswal, Mozena dented relations with US, claims BNP

The BNP feels Minister Syed Ashraful Islam's remark on US Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Desai Biswal has damaged Dhaka's ties with Washington.

The party claims the incumbent Awami League-led government does not have any supporter in the international community.

BNP's acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday said Syed Ashraf had dubbed Biswal a ‘worthless minister’ and called the US envoy Dan Mozena "housemaid Morzina".

“We believe this has further strained the US-Bangladesh ties," he said.

Biswal, the US point person for south and central Asia, came to Dhaka after attending the 18th SAARC Summit last month.

The US and several other Western nations remain critical of the Jan 5 elections boycotted by the BNP and have been pushing for an "all-inclusive polls".

Biswal reportedly enquired with Opposition Leader Raushon Ershad about the next general election when she met her.

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BNP chief Khaleda Zia reportedly asked Biswal for continued US support in "strengthening Bangladesh's democratic practices".

It was the second meeting between the two in a year.

A day later, Awami League spokesperson Syed Ashraf slammed the Khaleda-Biswal meeting at a Khulna rally on Nov 29.

He called Biswal a "worthless minister" and that Khaleda was "begging her for help".

He said the former Bangladesh prime minister looked like a "child in front of Biswal" on TV.

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Addressing US envoy Mozena as a "housemaid", the Awami League general secretary alleged he had "tried his best to thwart the Jan 5 polls".

“He left no stones unturned. Thank god, his tenure is finally ending…

"Bangladesh's situation is no more in such state where a 'housemaid Morzina' can influence the shift of power," he said referring to Mozena.

Fakhrul claimed the government did not have friends abroad and quoted former US envoy William Milam as saying that Bangladesh was on its way to establish a one-party rule again.

However, the government says Bangladesh's recent victories in the IPU, CPA and the IMSO polls manifest world community's approval the country's democracy.