US trying to ease pressure on Bangladesh, says US counselor

The issues related to the Rohingya crisis and overall security in the Indo-Pacific region are likely to get priority during US Department of State Counselor Derek Chollet’s Bangladesh visit next week.

“We are deeply concerned about the situation in Myanmar which is only getting worse,” said Chollet ahead of the planned visit which may last for around 24 hours.

Talking at the television talk show “Tritiyo Matra” online, the US counselor said they are doing whatever they can in cooperation with Bangladesh and to try to ease the pressure on the country from the refugee crisis by providing critical assistance to it to support its humanitarian needs, also with efforts to try to bring some of the refugees back to the US.

The forthcoming visit of US Counselor Chollet will help strengthen Bangladesh-US relations, said a foreign ministry spokesperson Thursday.

“Counselor Derek Chollet will be visiting Bangladesh. The purpose of his visit is to strengthen the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and the United States,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Seheli Sabrin told reporters in the afternoon.

The US counselor serves at the rank of under secretary as a senior policy advisor to the US secretary of state on a wide range of issues and conducts special diplomatic assignments as directed by the secretary.

Sabrin said Chollet will also discuss the Rohingya issue and see the situation on the ground. Bangladesh is hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas in Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char.

Chollet previously held positions at the state department, the White House, and the Department of Defence.