Noted Foreign Policy experts and businessmen have expressed mixed reactions over outcomes of Prime Minister Shinjo Abe’s visit, particularly Bangladesh’s withdrawal of candidature from the UN Security Council (UNSC) membership in favour of Japan without getting anything in exchange.
All of them termed the Japanese Prime Minister’s visit to Bangladesh after 14 years ‘an important event for our nation in the field of economy and trade since it will trigger a new vista for rapid economic growth through massive Japanese investment in industry and infrastructure.
They, however, warned that the potential Japanese investment, which would also encourage foreign direct investment from other developed countries eventually would not come true if Bangladesh’s political leadership of both the ruling AL and opposition parties, including BNP, failed to create what they said, “An investment friendly atmosphere in the country through peace and political stability.”
They said this while talking to The New Nation separately on Sunday evening after the Japanese Prime Minister’s departure for Sri Lanka, concluding his two-day visit to Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, The Japanese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Kuni Sato, however, said, “It’s because of long-term relations between Japan and Bangladesh. We will always consider Bangladesh as trusted friend even if Bangladesh continues to contest the election.”
She conveyed the message while talking to a selected group of journalists at a breakfast briefing at city’s Sonargaon Hotel, where the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was staying during his visit to Bangladesh.
“His coming to Bangladesh with chief executives of top companies of Japan was a signal to developed countries to attract large investment in this country. “Bangladesh can show the West that one of the G-7 member countries is coming to Bangladesh with trust in a bigger way,” said Sato.
Japan thinks the sudden upswing of relations is natural and purely driven by economic factors. The official also said the visit by the Japanese Prime Minister is very timely as the CEOs of top industries in Japan are very much keen to invest in Bangladesh as they found the country a very promising one in the days to come, she added.
Talking to The New Nation, leading Foreign Policy expert of the country, Prof Dr Imtiaz Ahmed of Dhaka University said, “Bangladesh had to concede the candidature of non-permanent membership to Japan without any give and take policy because our government was suffering from a “Governance and credibility crisis”, created after January 5 non-participatory general election.”
“Bangladesh ought to have get something important from Japan in exchange of the withdrawal of candidature to UNSC non-permanent membership election if there were no ‘Governance and credibility crisis’ of the country’s administration,” he said. Without contradicting the above observation directly, former Ambassador Mohammad Zamir, who is a member of the ruling Awami League (AL) Advisory Council, said, “The decision by Bangladesh to withdraw candidature in the election to the non-permanent membership of the UNSC will not diminish the importance of the profile of Bangladesh in the world community or the United Nations.”
He said, “Our participation in the United Nations’ Peace Keeping Operation has brought an imminent position for Bangladesh in that organization.”
Prof Dr Shahiduzzaman of Dhaka University has said Bangladesh did not specifically get anything from Japan for withdrawal of UNSC candidature.
He asserted saying,”To my mind, the relations with Japan is more important to Bangladesh than that of the non-permanent membership of the UNSC’s importance is.”
Leading economist Executive Director of CPD Dr Mustafizur Rahman told this Correspondent that the main message of the Japanese Prime Minister’s visit to Bangladesh was: “Our country’s main problem for investment, growth and employment creation is the lack of infrastructure and that problem is going to be solved the potential massive investment from Japan.
Business leaders, including BGMEA President M Atiqul Islam, President of Japan-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and former leader FBCCI and BARVIDA Abdul Haque told The New Nation that both bilateral trade and Japanese investment in Bangladesh would significantly increased as an outcome of the Shinjo Abe’s visit.
