Bangladesh values concerns of development partners’ concerns, foreign minister says

He says the government had to withstand pressure to hold the election

The government does not feel any pressure from other countries after overcoming the challenges in overseeing the general election amid concerns of the West, Hasan Mahmud has said.

The foreign minister of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s new cabinet spoke to journalists about different issues on his first day in office on Sunday.

When a journalist asked about the criticism of the government over the election boycotted by the BNP, Mahmud said: “Besides friendship with all, we value the concerns of friendly countries.”

“We are not feeling any pressure. There were different kinds of pressure over the polls. The election has been held by overcoming these pressures,” he said.

“Different countries have different sorts of perceptions and narratives. We value these. At the end of the day, we will work together. This is the main thing. Everyone is our development partner,” he said.

Mahmud was the information minister of the last government. He had also worked as the state minister for foreign affairs for several months in 2009 after the Awami League returned to power.

He said the government will stick to its foreign policy despite challenges because of disagreements between countries in a global context.

He emphasised strengthening economic diplomacy to expand trade by exploring markets in the East, South America and Africa to reduce dependency on exports to the West.