US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday Washington would work together with Bangladesh to help rebuild the country, and also help to get back the billions of dollars stolen from the country.
"We want to be good partners. We will make things work fast for Bangladesh," Secretary Blinken said when he held a meeting with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at a hotel in New York.
The Secretary of State said the US has "tremendous" respect for Professor Yunus and they admired that he took up the leadership of the country at a critical time for the nation.
Professor Yunus said the Interim Government was tasked with rebuilding the country, and he sought support from multilateral agencies such as the World Bank, the IMF, and also the USAID to fix the country's economy and its institutions.
"It has to be done very fast," he said, adding the entire population is "unified" behind his government and was looking forward to rebuilding the country as quickly as they can.
Reforms undertaken by the Interim Government, anti corruption measures, repatriation of the stolen Bangladesh money stashed abroad, labour issues, trade and economic cooperation, and law and order featured in the talks.
Professor Yunus said fighting corruption and improving law and order were the top priority of the government.
"The country was sunk into an ocean of corruption during the previous regime. This (fighting corruption) is my number one issue," he said.
He sought US support to get back the billions of dollars stolen from the country and siphoned abroad by individuals linked with the previous regime.
"It is a huge amount of money. Unbelievable!!," he said, referring to the laundered assets.
Secretary Blinken offered the US government's support in this regard. "We are happy to help," he said.
"We have a lot of expertise in dealing with endemic corruption," Blinken added .
The Chief Adviser said improving labour standards was one of the government's top goals, as this would pave the way for more foreign direct investment in the country.
Secretary Blinken said the US is the largest source of foreign investment in Bangladesh, and he hoped it would grow in the coming years.
They also discussed the UN fact finding mission investigating atrocities during the July-August uprising and media freedom.
Professor Yunus said his government has upheld freedom of speech and freedom of the press. He said he has asked the media to criticise them "as best as they can.".
The Chief Adviser said the government is committed to maintaining racial harmony in the country.
"All Bangladeshis are a big family. We have differences. But we are not enemies," he said.
The two leaders also discussed the Rohingya crisis, with the Chief Adviser seeking support for hundreds of thousands of young Rohingya children growing up in the camps in Bangladesh.
BDST: 1047 HRS, SEPT 27, 2024
MUM/MSK
