Dhaka reaffirms to US its pledge to hold free and fair election

On Tuesday (5 September), Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen reiterated to the US side that Bangladesh’s commitment to the people is to hold a free and fair election.

He said the Election Commission is taking preparations, but it can’t be said which political party is thinking what about the upcoming election. The foreign secretary was talking to reporters after his meeting with visiting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Regional Security in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs Mira Resnick at Foreign Service Academy.

He said they discussed all security related issues including energy security and cyber security and said the multifaceted relations between the two countries demand frequent engagement.

Talking about the human rights issues, Masud Momen said Bangladesh takes all allegations seriously and follow due process. On Indo-Pacific issue, he said, the US also does not want dominance by a particular country in the region.

Both countries share a vision to ensure the Indo-Pacific region is free, open, peaceful, and secure.   Earlier, Bangladesh and the United States held the ninth annual bilateral security dialogue in Dhaka as part of "comprehensive security relationship" between the two governments.

Khandker Masudul Alam, Director General (North America) led the Bangladesh delegation while the US Side was led by Mira Resnick. The security dialogue is an annual, civilian-led discussion that touched on all elements of the security relationship between the two countries.

Representatives from both sides discussed Indo-Pacific regional issues, security and human rights, military cooperation, peacekeeping, security assistance, and counterterrorism, among other topics.

The United States and Bangladesh have a strong security partnership and share many interests in the Indo-Pacific region, said the US side. This year, the security dialogue closely followed the bilateral defense dialogue, which took place August 23 and 24 in Dhaka.

The bilateral defense dialogue featured senior officers and civilians from the US and Bangladeshi militaries. They discussed a range of issues specific to the military-to-military relationship, including military education, peacekeeping and upcoming military exercises, including next year’s Disaster Response Exercise & Exchange.

The security dialogue covered a wide range of issues related to partnership between the two countries including strategic priorities and regional security issues, defense cooperation, civilian security cooperation, UN peacekeeping, counter-terrorism, and countering violent extremism.

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