Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Wednesday urged the world leaders to shelter Rohingyas on humanitarian ground and to follow the Bangladesh government’s initiative in giving all the helps to save Rohingyas.
“Bangladesh has given shelter to about one million Rohingyas on humanitarian ground by opening its border and now it can tell other countries to help Rohingyas the same way,” Abdul Momen said.
The foreign minister said this in a press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to Germany and the United Arab Emirates.
Foreign secretary M Shahidul Haque and senior officials were present on the occasion, among others.
Mentioning the Bangladesh role in sheltering Rohingyas, the minister said, a total of 193 countries are the members of the United Nations. The Rohingya crisis will be resolved if they take the responsibilities to save Rohingyas.
“We are working to find a solution to Rohingya crisis. ‘You know, we know too, where the solution got stuck,” the minister said.
He said, their efforts will be there to raise the issue in all discussions in international forums and they expect a wider support so that they can resolve the issue.
Referring to Albert Einstein, Momen said, if problem is known, solution will not be difficult.
He said, the solution will be very simple if the problem is identified correctly. ‘We’ve identified the problem. We will find out the solution, too.’
On Myanmar’s continuous attempt of instigation, the foreign minister said they sometimes instigate, but this is good news that they
accept it easily when Bangladesh talked about corrective measures on their propaganda.
‘It’s a good sign, very positive sign. We want to build our relationship based on these good signs,’ said Momen.
He said that issues related to the Rohingya crisis and regional security would be discussed in various speaking slots kept for prime minister Sheikh Hasina and other heads of government at the Munich Security Conference 2019.
“Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries and he wants to see whether the UN Refugee Agency – UNHCR – can convince other countries,” he said.
On February 8, the UNHCR called on the Bangladesh authorities to continue to allow people fleeing violence in Myanmar to seek safety in Bangladesh.
The UNHCR also offered its support to the government of Bangladesh to assess and respond to the needs of people who have arrived seeking safety from violence in Myanmar. Bangladesh is now hosting around 1.3 million Rohingyas and received more than 720,000 Rohingyas from Myanmar since August 2017.
Meanwhile, the foreign minister said, Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates will sign two investment-related deals during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s three-day visit to the Middle Eastern nation, starting on February 17.
“This will speed up our economic diplomacy,” Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen told reporters on Wednesday, referring to the new foreign policy priority of the government. Trade and investment would be the key focus, he said. UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum who is also the ruler of Dubai invited the prime minister for the visit.
Sheikh Hasina will attend the inauguration of the International Defence Exhibition (IDEX 2019) in Abu Dhabi on the morning of February 17 and visit the exhibition.
She will leave Dhaka on Thursday for Germany in her first overseas visit after assuming the office for the third consecutive term. On the way back to Dhaka, she will visit the UAE which is the second biggest destination for Bangladeshi workers.
Bangladesh has recently signed a deal to send workers in 19 different categories. The government has also opened its market for Bangladeshi doctors and engineers.
About 50,000 Bangladesh workers became legal under the general mercy scheme of the UAE government between August and December last year.
The foreign minister said during the visit, the prime minister will interact with the Bangladesh community apart from the meetings with her counterpart and other senior ministers. The foreign ministry is also expecting to hold a Foreign Office Consultation at the foreign secretary level during the visit. Of the two MoUs, Abdul Momen said, one is related to an LNG terminal and power plant and the other is about a special economic zone in Matarbari.
The MoU between the private office of Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum and Bangladesh Power Development Board is meant for projects on the development of liquefied natural gas terminal, power plant and any other projects of mutual interest.
The second MoU is between the private office of Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum and Bangladesh Investment Development Authority for setting up a special economic zone in Matarbari on 300 acres of land, Momen said.
The UAE is regarded as an economic powerhouse and trade centre. “So this visit will strengthen our relations and will also speed up the policy of our economic diplomacy.”
Bangladesh will participate in the Dubai expo next year in a big way, Momen said. The prime minister will arrive back in Dhaka on February 20.
