Published : 21 May 2024, 08:51 AM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 11:31 AM
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong is set to arrive in Dhaka on Tuesday on a two-day trip to Bangladesh to advance her country’s interests in a “peaceful, stable and prosperous Indian Ocean region”.
Australia is a member of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad led by the US and seen as the West’s initiative to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
India and Japan are the two other countries in the grouping.
Wong’s visit comes days after US Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu’s Dhaka tour to improve “bitter” ties with the Sheikh Hasina government.
Besides meeting Hasina, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud and other members of the government in Dhaka, Wong will travel to Cox's Bazar, where she will see how Australia's humanitarian assistance is delivering practical support to displaced Myanmar Rohingya and Bangladeshi host communities.
Australia's humanitarian assistance is part of a global effort to address the causes of displacement, find durable solutions, and ultimately allow Rohingya to realise their goal of returning to their homeland.
“As Australia enhances our engagement with the Indian Ocean region, I am pleased to undertake my first visit to Bangladesh,” Wong said in a statement on Monday.
She said Australia was working with Bangladesh to deepen cooperation, including on trade and investment, and to find practical solutions to shared challenges such as climate change, regional maritime security and people smuggling.
According to Wong, Australia and Bangladesh have “significant” people-to-people links, with over 50,000 people in Australia born in Bangladesh.
Foreign Minister Mahmud said Australian investment in Bangladesh, seasonal employment, welfare of the Bangladeshi diaspora in Australia , among other issues.
