UNB, Dhaka :
Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh Ambassador Rensje Teerink has said the Rohingya issue will not disappear from the agenda until a lasting solution is found even though the world is now facing challenges like the Covid-19 pandemic and a situation in Afghanistan.
“I don’t have the magic recipe nor do I have the crystal ball to see how this situation will evolve. But I can make sure that it (Rohingya issue) will not disappear from the agenda,” said the outgoing EU Ambassador, noting that the issue is something really close to her heart personally having seen and visited the Rohingya camps many times.
Recognizing a lot of focus on Afghanistan, Ambassador Teerink said that does not mean that the Rohingya issue should disappear. “I will keep on following this.”
The EU envoy made the remarks while responding to a question at a virtual dialogue titled “Bangladesh-European Union Relations: Prognosis for the Future” premiered on Thursday where she delivered the keynote speech.
Cosmos Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Cosmos Group, hosted the dialogue as part of its ongoing Ambassador’s Lecture Series.
The opening remarks were delivered by Cosmos Foundation Chairman Enayetullah Khan. The session was chaired by Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, renowned scholar-diplomat and former Advisor on Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh Caretaker Government.
Distinguished Fellow at Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya,
former BGMEA President and Mohammadi Group Chairperson Dr Rubana Huq, founder Chairman of Policy Research Institute (CRI) Dr Zaidi Sattar and Professor at International Relations Department of Dhaka University Imtiaz Ahmed and Honorary Advisor Emeritus, Cosmos Foundation Ambassador (Retd) Tariq A Karim comprised the panel of discussants.
Enayetullah Khan raised the issues like growing US-China conflict, Covid-19 pandemic, climate change and crisis in Afghanistan; and said it seems that the Rohingya refugee issue is almost fading away from people’s minds.
Terming the Rohingya issue a very “complex and complicated” one, he said without cooperation from the three important countries – India, China and Japan – he does not think the Rohingya issue can be resolved.
