Monitoring Desk
DHAKA: Russia accused the United States (US) of interfering in the internal affairs of Bangladesh, claiming that the US ambassador’s meeting with the family of the BNP leader was an attempt to interfere in Bangladesh’s domestic affairs.
This was reported by Bangladesh’s largest circulated daily, Prothom Alo citing the Russian embassy’s statement.
While talking to the media at a regular press briefing in Moscow on Thursday, Maria Zakharova, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson, said that the US ambassador was “continuously trying to influence the domestic processes in Bangladesh.”
The spokesperson said that the US ambassador is trying to hide behind the pretext of caring about the Bangladeshi’s rights, Prothom Alo reported.
Allegations of interference in internal affairs
Earlier, on December 14, the US ambassador visited the BNP leader Sajedul Islam’s residence, who went missing around ten years ago.
During the US ambassador’s visit, a group of people tried to attack Peter D Haas as he came out of the house. However, he could leave the area safely with the assistance of his security detail.
After this, Hass held an urgent meeting with Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen, asking how the details of his visit got leaked.
The US informed the highest authorities of the Bangladesh government of its concern about the incident involving the US ambassador in Dhaka, Peter Haas.
The issue has been discussed in Washington as well. During discussions with the ambassador of Bangladesh to the US, Mohammad Imran, on December 15, the US Assistant Secretary of State of South Asian affairs and Central, Donald Lu, showed worries for Haas’ security.
On Thursday, referring to the same event, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman called Bangladesh Foreign Minister Shahriar Alam and discussed elections, security, and safety of US mission staff.
