John Kerry to focus on strengthening partnership with Bangladesh on Dhaka visit: State Department

The US state department says Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to Dhaka on Aug 29 to highlight the “longstanding and broad US-Bangladesh relationship.”

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 25 August 2016, 03:48 AM
Updated : 25 August 2016, 03:48 AM

He will meet with government officials to discuss “our growing cooperation on global issues”.

“He also will focus on strengthening our longstanding bilateral partnership on democracy, development, security and human rights,” his office said in a statement on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, his Bangladesh counterpart AH Mahmood Ali, said that Bangladesh was “delighted” that Kerry would be coming to Dhaka on his first visit to the country.

He will leave on the same day for New Delhi, where he will have meetings with senior Indian officials and co-chair the second U.S.-India Strategic and Commercial Dialogue (S&CD).

Kerry’s visit to Dhaka comes amid US security concerns here following the July 1 terrorist carnage in which 20 hostages, mostly foreigners, were killed.

After the attack, Kerry had phoned Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and sent the Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Nisha Desai Biswal to express Washington’s solidarity with Bangladesh.

Biswal, during her visit, offered US expertise in building Bangladesh’s capabilities in countering terrorism.

The government said at the time it would welcome cooperation from all “friendly” countries to root out terrorism and extremism.

During his brief visit, the secretary of state will meet the prime minister and the foreign minister, among others, officials have said.