Bangladesh politics grew to become the main target of a disagreement between the US and Russia on Saturday as Washington accused Moscow of creating “deliberate mischaracterisation” of its international coverage regarding the upcoming elections within the South Asian nation.
Bangladesh goes to the polls on January 7 subsequent yr.
Throughout a daily weekly briefing in Moscow on Wednesday, Russian International Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova claimed that US ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas and a high-ranking consultant of the native opposition mentioned plans to organise mass anti-government protests within the nation in the course of the assembly.
Reacting to her assertion, a US State Division spokesperson in Washington stated, We’re conscious of Zakharova’s deliberate mischaracterisation of US international coverage and Ambassador Haas’s conferences.
Washington’s response, issued by the US embassy, got here hours after the Russian embassy in Dhaka up to date its web site detailing Zakharova’s November 22 feedback in Moscow.
The US official stated America desires to see a free and truthful election carried out in a peaceable method in step with the aspirations of the individuals of Bangladesh.
To help that shared objective of free and truthful elections carried out in a peaceable method, US Embassy personnel have interaction and can proceed to interact with the federal government, opposition, civil society, and different stakeholders to induce them to work collectively for the advantage of the Bangladeshi individuals, he stated.
The USA doesn’t help any political social gathering in Bangladesh. Nor does america favour one political social gathering over one other, the spokesperson stated.
In her weekly briefing, Zakharova additionally claimed that the US ambassador promised his interlocutor to supply data help within the occasion that the authorities used power towards contributors in peaceable demonstrations.
The Russian international ministry official stated these assurances have been purportedly made on behalf of the embassies of the US, Britain, Australia and several other different nations.
The Russian spokesperson stated the motion of the US ambassador to Bangladesh could be seen as nothing lower than gross interference within the inside affairs of a sovereign state on the a part of Washington and its satellites.
(However) on our (Russia’s) half, we’ve got no doubts relating to the power of the Bangladeshi authorities to carry the parliamentary elections scheduled for January 7, 2024, in full compliance with nationwide laws, independently, with out the assistance of abroad well-wishers, she stated.
Zakharova asserted that Moscow has been voicing its considerations repeatedly in regards to the makes an attempt by the US and its allies to affect inside political processes in Bangladesh, ostensibly beneath the banner of guaranteeing transparency and inclusiveness within the upcoming parliamentary elections there.
She additionally recalled the 2013 second Maidan protest towards the then Russian-backed regime in Ukraine saying, We witnessed an identical state of affairs ten years in the past, in a slanted reference to the US function at the moment.
The Maidan Protest Motion was a political upheaval that happened in Ukraine from November 2013 to February 2014. It was sparked by the federal government’s choice to droop an affiliation settlement with the European Union and as an alternative strengthen ties with Russia.
The change of barbs between America and Russia got here two months after the US State Division criticised Russian International Minister Sergei Lavrov’s feedback throughout his Dhaka go to that Moscow would stop any try to ascertain dictates and interference by Washington within the area, together with in Bangladesh.
Lavrov, on a go to to Dhaka in late September, had stated, We are able to clearly see that the US and its allies are actually making an attempt to advertise their pursuits within the area through the use of the so-called Indo-Pacific technique.
The Russian international minister’s feedback drew sharp criticism from Washington at the moment.
“A rustic that has invaded two of its neighbours, is prosecuting an aggressive struggle the place it bombs colleges and hospitals and condo buildings every day, shouldn’t be speaking about every other nation imposing dictates, a US spokesman had stated then.
Bangladesh is constructing its first of two nuclear energy crops in collaboration with Russian state-owned atomic firm Rosatom at a price of USD 12.65 billion. Ninety per cent of the quantity is being financed by Moscow by a Russian mortgage repayable inside 28 years with a 10-year grace interval.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war-related sanctions delayed the development of the plant and in December final yr, Bangladesh denied entry to a Russian ship that was carrying gear for the nuclear energy plant because the vessel fell beneath the purview of US sanctions.
(Solely the headline and film of this report could have been reworked by the Enterprise Normal employees; the remainder of the content material is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)