City Desk :
Bangladesh Embassy in Washington DC has celebrated the 50th anniversary of establishing bilateral relations between Bangladesh and the USA in a befitting and festive manner.
The mission hosted a grand reception to celebrate the historic occasion as well as the 52nd Independence and National Day of Bangladesh on the fourth instant in Washinton, according to a message received in Dhaka on Tuesday, reports BSS.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen attended it as the Chief Guest while U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Deputy Administrator Ambassador Isobel Coleman spoke as the Guest of Honour.
Awami League Joint General Secretary Mahbub-ul Alam Hanif, MP, and Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nahim Razzaq, MP, were present at the function as the special guests, reports BSS.
The ceremonial part of the program began with playing of the national anthems of Bangladesh and the United States.
A video message delivered by US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken on the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh-US bilateral ties was screened.
“I’m delighted to join you in celebrating the five decades of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and the United States,” Blinken said in his message.
Blinken noted that on April 4, 1972, President Richard Nixon sent a letter to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, establishing diplomatic ties, predicting that the ties and goodwill between our people would grow for the years to come.
He hoped that the ties between Bangladesh and the US would grow deeper in the coming days through enhanced collaboration in the areas of mutual cooperation and stronger people to people connections.
Foreign Minister Dr Momen, in his speech, reaffirmed that Bangladesh deeply values its partnership with the United States and the two countries share the similar values and principles for upholding democracy and human dignity and adherence to global peace and security.
