U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s stops in Bangladesh and India come amid increasing concerns about terrorism in both South Asian nations.
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US Secretary of State John Kerry was reportedly delayed in the traffic crawl along with his convoy after he landed, according to news agency ANI.
Two days before Kerry’s visit, security forces said they had killed three militants, including a Bangladeshi-born Canadian citizen called Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury who was suspected of being the mastermind. Some have accused Bangladesh of turning a blind eye to the possibility of outsiders radicalizing elements of the Muslim-majority nation.
“So I’m confident that our assistance to Bangladesh will increasingly be created to help the government address terrorism threats from domestic and trans-national organisations”, Kerry said.
Kerry, on his first trip to Bangladesh as America’s top diplomat, met in Dhaka on Monday with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Foreign Minister Abdul Hassam Mahmood Ali, opposition officials and students.
When the premier wanted to know the source of money of the IS terrorist outfit, the U.S. secretary of state said the group is earning money by selling oil from the fields that it captured and imposing levy on the general people of the IS-dominated regions.
IS has claimed responsibility for the July 1 attack on the upscale cafe in Dhaka in which 22 people were killed and pictures of the attackers holding IS flags were posted online.
Kerry also held talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during his one-day visit to Bangladesh that focused on efforts to combat militants following a series of deadly attacks. The cafe attack has prompted foreigners, including potential investors, to leave Bangladesh – sparking worries for its garment industry, the world’s second largest after China.
According to analysts, Kerry’s visit takes place amid the perception that the United States is not happy with the incumbent government following the last parliamentary elections that Washington did not find “credible” as BNP-led opposition boycotted the vote.
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About his visit to the historic Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi-32 in the capital, Kerry said he was really impressed to see the historical evidence in the house. He said that Islamic State had wide contacts around the world, including in South Asia, adding: “They are connected to some degree with some of the operatives here, and we made that very clear in our conversations”. “We want to help”, he said.
