US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller has met Chittagong Port Authority Chairman Rear Admiral Zulfiqur Aziz and toured the seaport facilities through which over 90 per cent of Bangladesh’s trade flows.

They discussed the important role US private business investment could play in port upgrades and other construction projects.

The US envoy visited Chattogram on April 16-19 to promote bilateral trade and investment, support the growing military partnership between the United States and Bangladesh, and bolster people-to-people ties, said the US Embassy in Dhaka on Friday.

Ambassador Miller visited US private energy company Excelerate, whose Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) in the Bay of Bengal is supplying natural gas used to produce power for Chattogram’s six million residents and its entire industrial area.

The FSRU has a 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day regasification capacity, increasing Bangladesh’s ability to reliably use its domestic natural gas reserves.

Ambassador Miller met business leaders to learn more about local industries that contribute to the economic development of both the Bangladeshi and US economies.

He also visited a ship-breaking yard and a steel melting and re-rolling facility.

Miller reiterated the importance of worker rights and safety, and called on business leaders to protect workers and the environment and put an end to child labour.

In support of growing US-Bangladesh military ties, Ambassador Miller gave remarks at the closing ceremony of a US-Bangladesh Special Warfare Diving and Salvage (SWADS) exercise.

The exercise included modules on human rights, first aid, and mission planning.

The US envoy laid a wreath and planted a tree to honour Seaman Mohammad Nurul Islam who was killed during a UN Peacekeeping Operation (PKO) in 2005.

He paid his respects to the 146 Bangladeshis who have lost their lives in PKOs, and expressed his appreciation for Bangladesh’s support of international peace and security as the

second largest troop-contributing country in the world.

He highlighted the opportunities of studying in the United States as well as the EducationUSA information and services offered at the Corner.