The US has said that it has “taken note” of the remarks of Chinese Ambassador in Bangladesh Li Jiming on the US-led Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, better known as Quad.

“Well, we have taken note of that statement from the PRC ambassador to Bangladesh. What we would say is that we respect Bangladesh’s sovereignty, and we respect Bangladesh’s right to make foreign policy decisions for itself,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price said in reply to a question in Washington.

Li at an event in Dhaka on Monday termed Quad “anti-China” and warned Bangladesh against any form of participation in the group, saying that it would “substantially damage” bilateral relations, bdnews24.com reported.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen responded to Jiming’s remarks, calling it “presumptuous” and asserting that it will take a decision based on "neutral and balanced" foreign policy.

“We have an incredibly strong relationship with Bangladesh. We work closely with our partners there on a range of issues, from economic growth to climate change to humanitarian issues,” said Price.

“And when it comes to the Quad, we’ve said this before, but the Quad, it’s an informal, essential, multilateral mechanism that right now conveys – convenes like-minded democracies – the United States, India, Australia, and Japan – to coordinate in the Indo-Pacific, and fundamentally, to push forward our goal of a free and open Indo-Pacific region,” he added.

First established in 2007, Quad is an informal strategic dialogue established between the US, Japan, Australia and India. The initiative is widely regarded as a response to the growing economic and military power of China which is often termed "expansionist".

(SAM)