John Kerry visits Dhaka Monday
Diplomatic Correspondent
United States Secretary of State John Kerry will pay an official visit to Bangladesh on Monday, diplomatic sources told The Independent yesterday.
His visit is aimed at deepening the Dhaka-Washington ties, which has experienced ups and downs over the last few years due to some issues, they said.
Yes, US Secretary of State John Kerry will come to Bangladesh on a days trip on August 29, a top government official said confirming the visit.
He will come to Dhaka from Geneva, Switzerland in the morning and leave the capital for India in the evening, said the sources.
While in Dhaka, Kerry will hold official talks with his Bangladesh counterpart Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, they said, adding that among other programmes, he will pay a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
His visit is taking place after his predecessor Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, visited Bangladesh in 2011. According to foreign ministry officials, this visit reflects the depth and maturity of the Dhaka-Washington relationship and the importance US attaches to it.
About the topics of discussion between Foreign Minister Ali and US Secretary of State Kerry, they said the entire range of bilateral issues will be discussed.
Obviously as the visit is taking place against the backdrop of a terrorist attack on a Gulshan hotel on July 1, the security issue will get prominence during the official talks, the sources said.
The US secretary of state is all but certain to reiterate his countrys offer to help Bangladesh fight terrorism, radicalisation and violent extremism, they said.
The sources also said that Kerrys visit also reflects a change of heart on the part of the US, which was critical of the one-sided parliamentary elections on January 5, 2014.
Undoubtedly, the visit will infuse new dynamism in the relationship between Bangladesh and the US, they added.
