New US Ambassador Bernicat arrives in Bangladesh

New US Ambassador in Bangladesh Marcia Stephens Bloom Bernicat has arrived in Dhaka amid a media frenzy.

Unlike her predecessor Dan Mozena, she did not speak to media on her arrival on Sunday, though Shahjalal International Airport witnessed a heavy presence of the press.

Bangladesh’s diplomatic norms do not allow ambassadors to represent their country officially until they present credentials to the president.

They can be functional.

A senior foreign ministry official told bdnews24.com that they “do not appreciate” a diplomat talking to media before presenting credentials.

Mozena, on his arrival, had spoken to media at the airport on Bangladesh’s domestic affairs that irked Dhaka.

Taking lesson from that episode, a diplomatic source told bdnews24.com, Washington instructed the US embassy in Dhaka not to arrange any media briefing before the envoy presented her credentials.

Bernicat landed in Dhaka amid a turbulent political situation

The US is always active in Bangladesh’s domestic affairs and it has called for a fresh election after the Jan 5 elections last year that the BNP boycotted.

Bernicat, before her confirmation as ambassador, in a statement at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington also termed the election “undeniably flawed”.

She had said she would take forward Washington’s policy to the country once her nomination was confirmed.

The senior diplomat had also observed that Bangladesh’s main political parties “urgently need to engage in constructive dialogue that leads to a more representative government”.

Bernicat served in the Department of State as Office Director for India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan in the Bureau of South Asian Affairs from 2006 to 2008.

She was previously US Ambassador to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau from 2008 to 2011.

From 2004 to 2006, she was the Senior-Level Director and Career Development Officer in the Bureau of Human Resources at the State Department.

Ambassador Bernicat also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados from 2001 to 2004, and as Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Lilongwe, Malawi from 1998 to 2001.

She was Principal Officer at the US Consulate in Casablanca, Morocco from 1995 to 1998, Deputy Political Counselor at the US Embassy in New Delhi, India from 1992 to 1995, and Desk Officer for Nepal and India in the Bureau of Near East and South Asian Affairs from 1988 to 1990.

Earlier in her career, she was Special Assistant to Deputy Secretary of State John Whitehead, Consular Officer in Marseille, France, and Political/Consular Officer at the US Embassy in Bamako, Mali.

* This story was corrected on Jan 27