US Deputy Secretary of State Beigun arrives in Dhaka

GBNEWS24 DESK//

S Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Beigun has arrived in Bangladesh on a three-day visit following his India tour, reports bdnews24.com.

The plane carrying Beigun arrived at Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on Wednesday afternoon, a foreign ministry official said.

Beigun will meet State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam at a hotel later at night.

The US diplomat will see Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the Ganabhaban on Thursday noon after a meeting with Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at State Guesthouse Padma.

Bangladesh will focus on economy and investment though the US showed more interest in regional strategy during Beigun‘s visit, Momen said on Monday.

“They (US) want to raise Indo-Pacific issues. We don’t object to it, but we want them to step forward for infrastructure development to make (the regional strategy) more effective. They need to invest,” he said.

Bangladesh will also seek US support to recoup the losses in the readymade garment sector amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“They could postpone tariff on Bangladeshi products for two to three years,” Momen said, noting that the US should help Bangladesh if it wants to improve ties.

A former special envoy to North Korea, Biegun will meet senior government officials and “reaffirm the United States-Bangladesh partnership”, the State Department said in a statement on Friday.