Secretary-General António Guterres reaffirmed the UN’s continued support to Bangladesh in overcoming unprecedented challenges that may arise out of the ongoing global conflicts, financial, energy, and food crises, and the adverse impact of climate change. He made this comment while meeting the Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. In this context, the Foreign Minister applauded the Black Sea Grain initiative that helped countries in need to import fertilizer and cereal to tackle their food crisis. Mr. Guterres informed that some European Countries namely Latvia, Estonia, Belgium, and Netherlands have an adequate stockpile of raw materials of fertilizer that Bangladesh may consider importing at an affordable price. Thanking Secretary-General, the Foreign Minister assured that Bangladesh will explore the possibility to seize this opportunity.
Appreciating Bangladesh’s extraordinary development trajectory under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, SG wished that Bangladesh would continue to achieve more success in the coming years, particularly in attaining the SDGs. SG also admired the continuous leadership of Bangladesh in maintaining international peace and security as the top troops and police contributing country to the United Nations peacekeeping operation.
They also discussed the Rohingya crisis and its possible way out in view of the recently adopted Security Council’s Resolution on Myanmar. They underscored the importance of ASEAN’s leadership in resolving the crisis. On this note, the Secretary-General highly appreciated Bangladesh’s generosity in sheltering 1.2 million Rohingyas and reiterated the UN’s support for returning the forcibly displaced Rohingyas to their homeland in Myanmar.
Earlier, the Foreign Minister held meetings with Csaba Kőrösi, the President of the General Assembly (PGA), Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Peacebuilding and Political Affairs (DPPA), and Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Department of Peace Operations (DPO).
During his Meeting with the PGA, they discussed a wide range of issues particularly the proposal of Bangladesh for establishing a Ministerial Forum on South-South Cooperation. Thanking the Foreign Minister for the above initiative, the PGA commended Bangladesh’s remarkable leadership, productive engagement, and significant contribution in recent times in various processes of the United Nations and expressed his commitment to work together.
During his Meeting with Under-Secretary-General for DPPA, USG appreciated the vital role played by Bangladesh during its Chairmanship of the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) for 2022. While meeting with Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Peace Operations, USG praised the recently concluded bilateral agreement between Bangladesh and Gambia for the joint deployment of peacekeepers in future UN Missions. He assured that his department will promote such initiatives where other countries can benefit from Bangladesh’s long-experience in peacekeeping operations. Against this backdrop, Dr. Momen reiterated Bangladesh’s continuous commitment to UN Peacekeeping Operations and its readiness to provide more peacekeepers and equipment as and when necessary.