2024-09-22 12:20:29
Chief advisor Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus will leave for New York on September 23 to attend the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). He is scheduled to address a high-level general debate on September 27.
Foreign Adviser. Tauhid Hossain said, ‘In his speech, he is expected to highlight the mass uprisings in Bangladesh over the past two months and reiterate his commitment to establishing a people-oriented, welfare-oriented and public-interest state system.’
He said this at a media briefing on Bangladesh’s participation in the 79th United Nations General Assembly session at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Tauhid Hossain said that Bangladesh’s strong position in international peacekeeping, climate change, global conflict, Rohingya crisis, problems of developing countries in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), prevention of illegal trafficking of resources, protection of migrant rights will be highlighted in the speech of the Chief Advisor.
He said, ‘The chief adviser will stay in New York for only 3 days. He will leave for Dhaka on September 27. The chief adviser will travel on a commercial flight and not on a charter flight like previous heads of government.
Highlighting the significance of Professor Yunus’s participation, the foreign adviser said, Nobel laureate Dr. Yunus is highly respected worldwide. The international community will give importance to his statement.
He said, ‘It is important to note that the interim government of Bangladesh has initiated reforms aimed at building a new Bangladesh and this UNGA session is an excellent opportunity to showcase our inclusive and justice-based approach to the global community.’
Tawhid said the chief adviser is expected to hold bilateral meetings with the prime ministers of the Netherlands, Pakistan and Nepal during his stay in New York. Besides, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, President of the European Union, UN Secretary General, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, World Bank President and USAID Administrator will meet Professor Yunus.
The foreign adviser stressed that the focus of these discussions will be human rights and government reform initiatives and Bangladesh will continue its commitment to human rights issues. This year’s session of the United Nations General Assembly is particularly significant for Bangladesh, as it is the 50th anniversary of Bangladesh’s membership in the United Nations.
He said, on the occasion of this milestone, Bangladesh will organize a high-level reception in the presence of Professor Yunus on September 24. He said, ‘We expect leaders of delegations from different countries, senior officials of the United Nations, heads of several international organizations and possibly some heads of state to attend.
When asked the names of the heads of government and state who may attend the reception of Bangladesh, the foreign adviser said that the confirmed participation is still speculative.
Unlike previous delegations, which ranged from 100 to 300 members in previous years, this year’s delegation will be limited to 57 members, most of whom are security personnel.
Hussain explained, ‘We are committed to avoiding unnecessary expenditure, hence ensuring that only those directly in charge of the UN General Assembly Session (UNGA) are accompanied by the Chief Adviser.
He said that there were 344 and 335 people in the delegation of Bangladesh in the 73rd and 74th General Assembly of the United Nations respectively. The 75th session was held virtually due to covid. Despite the Covid restrictions, 108 attended the 76th Session, 138 attended the 77th Session and 146 attended the 78th Session.
In response to a question, the adviser said, ‘I can’t say why the big delegation went earlier, I don’t know. But the present government has decided that expenditure needs to be reduced and unnecessary expenditure is not allowed.’
He said Prof. Yunus’ global reputation has attracted significant international media attention with numerous invitations for bilateral meetings and high-level communications. But his short stay of three days in New York will make it difficult to defend all the requests.
In response to a question, the foreign adviser said that there will be no bilateral meeting between Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to non-matching schedules of the two leaders. However, Hossain said that the Chief Adviser will hold a bilateral meeting with the UNGA as well as the Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar.
In response to another question regarding the agenda of the meeting with the Indian foreign minister, the foreign adviser said, he will discuss how Dhaka and New Delhi can maintain a good ‘working relationship’ between the two neighboring countries.
The Foreign Affairs Adviser said that besides the UN General Assembly session, he has attended several important meetings of Bangladesh including the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Ministerial Meeting, Commonwealth Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ministerial Meeting and the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Annual Ministerial Meeting. will represent
“We are organizing a high-level side event on the Rohingya crisis,” Hussain said. The foreign adviser said that Bangladesh considers multilateral diplomacy, especially the United Nations medium, as the main platform to protect its national interests.
He said, ‘Each and every issue prioritized in the United Nations agenda is of great importance to Bangladesh. We are committed to actively participate in all relevant events consistent with our national interests.’
The theme of this year’s general debate is “Leaving No One Behind: Working Together for Peace, Sustainable Development and Human Dignity for Present and Future Generations.”