February 12 elections will set the standard for future Bangladesh elections: US Ambassador to Bangladesh Dr Yunus

February 12 elections will set the standard for future Bangladesh elections: US Ambassador to Bangladesh Dr Yunus

MD Babul Bangladesh Correspondent
Dhaka, January 22: Principal Advisor Professor Muhammad Yunus said on Thursday that the February 12 general elections will set a benchmark for all future elections in Bangladesh.
He made the remarks when newly appointed US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent Christensen paid his first courtesy call on the principal advisor at the Jamuna, the state guest house in Dhaka.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed a range of issues, including the upcoming general elections, the comprehensive labor law approved by the interim government, the planned Bangladesh-US customs agreement and the Rohingya crisis.

The principal advisor also highlighted important foreign policy initiatives of the interim government, including Dhaka’s planned efforts to achieve ASEAN membership and the need to revive SAARC as an important platform for regional and economic cooperation in South Asia.

Professor Yunus said the government is fully prepared to hold free, fair and transparent elections on February 12. He noted that the European Union will deploy a large number of election observers and expressed hope that other development partners will also send observers to monitor the elections.
It will be a festive election. It will set the benchmark for good elections in the future. Let’s all work together,” the principal advisor said.
In response, Ambassador Christensen, who arrived in Bangladesh earlier this month, said he looked forward to working with whoever wins the February elections.

The US ambassador praised the interim government’s efforts to implement important reforms and praised Professor Yunus’ leadership over the past 18 months.
Ambassador Christensen also praised the newly enacted labor law.
Professor Yunus thanked President Donald Trump for reducing tariffs on Bangladeshi exports to the US and expressed hope that ongoing trade talks would lead to further tariff reductions.

The US ambassador welcomed the progress in trade talks and stressed that expanding agricultural trade is a key pillar of ongoing Dhaka-Washington talks.
Professor Yunus praised the US for providing humanitarian assistance to more than a million Rohingya Muslims living in camps in southeastern Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s role as a bridge between South Asia and Southeast Asia Highlighting the strategic position, the chief adviser said Dhaka is seeking ASEAN membership and has already applied for a Sectoral Dialogue Partnership with the regional bloc.

Professor Yunus also said that he has been making serious efforts over the past 18 months to revive the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to bring the people and economies of the region closer together. He expressed hope that the next government would take this initiative forward.

The two sides also discussed the recent US visa ban on 75 countries, including Bangladesh.

National Security Advisor Dr. Khalilur Rahman and SDG Coordinator Lamia Morshed were also present at the meeting.