UNB, Dhaka :
Experts on international relations have depicted more consistent and deeper engagement between Dhaka and Washington under the Biden Administration, with cooperation in the global fight against climate change presenting the most obvious theatre of cooperation between the two countries.
They hoped to see the US takes a greater role over the events in Myanmar and address the Rohingya issue, noting that the US needs to do more inside Myanmar with actors on the ground.
Experts from both countries were brought together virtually for a symposium hosted by the Cosmos Foundation to assess the Dhaka-Washington relationship in its present context and identify the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. The keynote address at the event was delivered by Michael Kugelman, Deputy Director of the Asia Programme and Senior Associate for South Asia at the Wilson Centre in Washington, DC.
Chairman of Cosmos Foundation Enayetullah Khan delivered the opening remarks at the event, which premiered Saturday on the Facebook page of Cosmos Foundation, and is now available for viewing at the convenience of viewers.
Renowned scholar-diplomat and adviser on foreign affairs to the last caretaker government Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury chaired the session.
It was the latest instalment in Cosmos Foundation’s flagship ‘Dialogue’ series, in which a high-level expert panel was tasked with tackling pressing issues of the day that has continued through the pandemic.
Former Ambassador Tariq Karim, Distinguished Professor of political science at the Illinois State University Dr Ali Riaz, Bangladeshi-American scientist-turned-politician Dr Nina Ahmad, and former Ambassador Serajul Islam joined as discussants.
Kugelman in his keynote speech offered some thoughts on perceptions of Bangladesh in the US, the current state of US-Bangladesh relations and discussed what to expect for the relationship in the Biden era.
He said there is scope for the US-Bangladesh relationship to grow in the Biden years and beyond, especially through opportunities for stepped up cooperation on climate change and through Bangladesh’s inclusion in the US Indo Pacific policy.
No matter how things ‘shake out’, Kugelman, an increasing presence across mainly Indian-owned media across platforms, said driven in particular by economic cooperation, the relationship between Dhaka and Washington should continue to be cordial and stable on the whole.
Kugelman said Washington knows that Bangladesh is a key theatre for Sino-India competition.
“Now, one can argue that Dhaka’s ties to Delhi are warmer and more multifaceted than they are with Beijing, but clearly there’s a competition playing out here,” he said adding that the Biden administration has an opportunity to try to shift the balance away from China and more towards India by stepping up its own engagements with Bangladesh through more maritime cooperation, more investment, more efforts to partner with Bangladesh on trans-regional connectivity projects, such as those within the BIMSTEC rubric.
