Hasina to head for Johannesburg Tuesday to join BRICS summit

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will leave Dhaka for Johannesburg on August 22 to attend the upcoming BRICS summit.

Leaders of the governments of BRICS countries, including Brazil, India, China and South Africa, are expected to attend the meeting.

At the summit, Russia, a influential member of the platform, will be represented by its foreign minister, as Russian President Mr Vladimir Putin has decided not to attend the meeting apparently to avoid the controversy surrounding the case filed against him in the international war crime tribunal.

Briefing the media about the Prime Minister’s visit to South Africa, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said that the Prime Minister will attend the Bangladesh Trade and Business Summit on August 23.

The Bangladesh Investment Development Authorities (BIDA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission are jointly organising this summit to focus on the business and investment opportunities in Bangladesh.

On the same day, the Prime Minister will attend the regional ambassadors’ conference, the foreign minister added.

Momen said that the Prime Minister is likely to pay courtesy calls on the heads of the governments of some countries, but the scheduling of those meetings is yet to be confirmed.

It may be mentioned that Bangladesh and another 20 countries, including Saudi Arabia Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia and Qatar, expressed their interest to join the bridge, but the process has been stalled for the time being.

Bangladesh is now a member of the New Development Bank (NDB) sponsored by the BRICS in 2021.

The Prime Minister will also deliver speech in the BRICS Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus dialogue on August 24, as a representative of a member country of the New Development Bank. Representatives from 70 countries are expected to attend this dialogue.

Momen said that Bangladesh has urged the developed countries to transfer technology and to invest surplus funds in developing countries like Bangladesh.

Responding to a question, the foreign minister said there is no scope in the law to send BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia abroad for treatment as she is a convicted prisoner.

“Have you seen anywhere in the world a convicted prisoner can be sent abroad?” he asked.

Replying to another question on the recently published report in the Indian Bengali Daily the Anandabazar, the foreign minister said that as India is a matured country they make observations with prudence.

The Anandabazar report claimed that India told the US: “The US steps to destabilise Hasina will not be positive for the security of South Asia.”

mirmostafiz@yahoo.com