DHAKA, Jan 1: Deposed premier Sheikh Hasina’s extradition is one of the several issues with India that Bangladesh would pursue while strong bilateral ties with Washington, Delhi and Beijing are priorities of the interim government, foreign affairs adviser Touhid Hossain said on Wednesday.
Hasina, 77, has been living in India since August 5 when she fled the country following a massive student-led protest that toppled her 16-year regime.
Bangladesh-based International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has issued arrest warrants for Hasina and several former Cabinet ministers, advisers, and military and civil officials for “crimes against humanity and genocide”.
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“This (Hasina’s extradition) is one of the issues, but we have other issues of interest as well. We will pursue them simultaneously,” Hossain told reporters while responding to a question.
Hossain said Dhaka’s efforts to bring Hasina back from Delhi and to uplift ties with India will proceed in parallel. “I believe both will proceed simultaneously”.
A former diplomat, Hossain, the de facto foreign minister in chief adviser Muhammad Yunus’ interim government, said that maintaining strong bilateral ties with the US, India, and China alongside addressing the Rohingya crisis would be key priorities for Bangladesh in 2025.
“Our priorities are to resolve the Rohingya crisis, keep good relations with those three countries, and to advance our economic and diplomatic efforts while ensuring stability,” he said.
On ties with the US, India and China, Hossain said neither of the countries were at the bottom of priority lists when asked whether there was any particular priority for one country over another.
“We place equal priority on maintaining ties with these three countries as our various interests are deeply aligned with them,” he said, adding that these countries also have their own interests in maintaining good relations with Bangladesh.
The foreign adviser hoped that Dhaka’s relations with these global powers would be strengthened further by the end of this year.
The interim government recently sent a diplomatic note to New Delhi seeking the extradition of Hasina from India.
The foreign ministry officials here said they awaited a response from India. Further steps would be taken once a response is received, it added.
Hossain said he plans to visit Beijing on January 20 for bilateral discussions on various matters.
“I will be going to address the issues we share,” he said, refraining from elaborating on specific topics to be discussed during his Beijing tour.
He, however, described the visit as part of Dhaka’s effort to maintain balanced relations with China, alongside the United States and India.
Asked if Dhaka considers the rapid development in Myanmar’s Rakhine state bordering Bangladesh as a challenge since the rebel Arakan Army took virtual control of almost the entire region, Hossain said Dhaka acknowledged the newly emerged reality.
“The situation in Myanmar’s Rakhine is extremely challenging because the ground realities there have changed,” he said.
But he said Dhaka’s main objective was to ensure the rights and security of the forcibly displaced Rohingyas since over a million of them took refuge in Bangladesh, some 60,000 in the past few months.
“Without this (rights and security) they will not agree to return,” he added. (PTI)
