US Special Envoy for South and Central Asia Sergio Gor on Saturday paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
The two discussed opportunities to strengthen economic cooperation and enhance the partnership between Bangladesh and the United States.
In a statement after the meeting, Gor said, “Today I called on the Honorable Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to discuss the great opportunities between the US and Bangladesh to strengthen economic cooperation and enhance our partnership. This is a priority for the United States, and working together we can achieve real results.”
The meeting began around 9:30am at the Prime Minister’s Office in Dhaka’s Tejgaon, said Deputy Press Secretary Jahidul Islam Rony.
He added that further details, including issues discussed, will be shared later.
During the meeting, Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, State Minister Shyama Obaid, Prime Minister’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir, and Prime Minister’s advisers Rehan Asif Asad and Mahadi Amin, among others, were present.
Gor arrived in Dhaka Thursday afternoon on a three‑day official visit. He met Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman that evening, and on Friday visited Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar.
Bangladesh–US ties ‘very positive’
On Thursday, Sergio Gor and Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral relations, with a focus on trade, investment, energy, immigration and the Rohingya crisis, while steering clear of several sensitive regional and geopolitical issues that had been widely expected to feature in the talks.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, the foreign minister described Bangladesh-US relations as “very positive”, saying both sides were committed to further strengthening what he called an “excellent bilateral relationship.”
Khalilur said they discussed different aspects of our bilateral relations, including investment, energy and immigration. “Because of time constraints, we could not go into details, but we discussed the general direction for moving the relationship forward,” he added.
Global support for Rohingya camps
While visiting the Rohingya camp on Friday, Sergio Gor urged international partners to increase their support for the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, which shelter more than one million Rohingyas hosted by Bangladesh.
“The United States has supported this camp and urges our partners around the world to increase their contributions,” he said.
US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent T Christensen was present during the visit.
“Today I visited Rohingya refugee communities in Cox’s Bazar with Ambassador Christensen. This is the largest refugee camp in the world, hosting over one million refugees,” Gor said.
