Bangladesh Foreign Minister AL Abdul Momin has departed for his first visit to Washington and would meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday. Issues of trade, Rohingya repatriation among others are likely to be discussed. 

“There is no specific issue for discussion,” Momin said, adding “we will have a broad-based discussion as the US just got the new administration.” He hoped to develop “much solid 

As Biden took charge of the US presidency in January this year, Bangladesh is expecting increased diplomatic support, seeking repatriation of around one million Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar. 

Momin also highlighted the urgency of “effective, well-calibrated intervention” from the international community to pressure Myanmar for creating a safe and conducive atmosphere for the return of Rohingyas. 

He also thanked the US for taking the principled position on the issue, and for all its humanitarian and diplomatic support to Bangladesh during this crisis. Developing countries have higher expectations from the Biden administration, he claimed. 

The country’s trade volume with the US, too, has increased over the past years, touching $9 billion in 2019. However, in 2020, Bangladesh’s export to the US was disrupted in the wake of the COVID-19. 

Woven apparel, knit apparel, miscellaneous textile products, cap, headgear, footwear, tobacco, snacks food, furniture, ceramic, toys, plastic items, and artificial flowers are the country’s main export items to the US. 

The minister would also take up the issue of deportation of Rashed Chaudhary- the fugitive convicted killer of its founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The issue is pending with the US for more than a decade now, he said.