Staff Reporter :US Secretary of State John Kerry has called for Bangladesh government’s action to end the ongoing violence in the country in a peaceful way. Condemned the targeting of civilians by political parties, he also laid emphasis on a free and fair media that plays a constructive role in ensuring human rights. In a meeting with his Bangladeshi counterpart Mahmood Ali, he condemned the targeting of civilians by political parties and stressed the need for opposition parties to cease such attacks immediately, a State Department Official said Thursday.”The Secretary called for government action to peacefully end the recent violence, underscored the government’s role in ensuring peaceful political expression for all parties, and emphasised the need for a free and fair media that plays a constructive role in ensuring human rights.””The Secretary noted Bangladesh’s increasing strategic importance in the region and underscored the need to protect Bangladesh’s fundamental freedoms,” said the official. John Kerry stated there can be no tolerance for tactics that target innocent citizens or inhibit political expression in a democratic Bangladesh. Kerry met Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department on the sidelines of the three-day White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism which concluded yesterday. The summit was attended by leaders from more than 70 countries. Ali was leading the Bangladeshi delegation.During the meeting, Kerry offered renewed US support to help achieve a political solution that returns Bangladesh to its democratic foundations. The two leaders also discussed bilateral relationship and other regional issues.Kerry conveyed his appreciation for the close relations the United States shares with Bangladesh. “They discussed Bangladesh’s economic growth and gains in development, as well as our shared efforts to address climate change and improve labor conditions,” the official said.Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministry of Bangladesh said the two leaders also discussed a range of bilateral and global issues and Kerry noted the “increasing” strategic importance of Bangladesh in the region and underscored the need to protect Bangladesh`s fundamental freedoms.They became agreed that “violence has no space in a democracy, and condemned the mindless violence and extremism in the name of ideology or political expression”.Kerry applauded Bangladesh for its huge success in the socio-economic fields and said the US would be happy to continue expanding its cooperation with Bangladesh.They agreed to work together on a number of global issues, including climate change, countering violent extremism, terrorism, peacekeeping, human security, and disaster preparedness.Kerry particularly expressed “deep interest” to work with Bangladesh in fighting climate change.
