US ready to work with any elected government in Bangladesh, says Ambassador Christensen

He says he is looking forward to the upcoming election and expresses optimism about the process

The United States will take no side in Bangladesh’s election and is prepared to work with whichever government is chosen by voters, according to US Ambassador Brent Christensen.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Bangladesh’s Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin in Dhaka on Wednesday, Christensen said the outcome of the election must be decided solely by the Bangladeshi people.

His comments come a week after a Washington Post report, citing diplomatic records, said US diplomats in Dhaka believed Jamaat-e-Islami could achieve its “best-ever result” in the vote. The report suggested Washington was seeking closer engagement with the Islamist party based on those assessments.

Christensen said the US wanted the election to reflect the will of Bangladesh’s electorate and stressed that Washington would engage with any government formed as a result of the vote.

He visited the Election Commission to receive an update on preparations for the 13th parliamentary election and an accompanying referendum, holding a meeting of nearly an hour with the chief election commissioner.

The ambassador said he was looking forward to the upcoming election and expressed optimism about the process.

Referring to a meeting with Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus last week, he said both had hoped the election day would be festive, allowing voters to express their views freely and enabling the authorities to conduct a successful election.

Christensen led a three-member US delegation at the meeting. Election Commission Secretary Akhtar Ahmed was also present.