President urges Myanmar to take back Rohingyas safely, respectfully

President Mohammed Shahabuddin on Thursday urged the Myanmar government to ensure safe and dignified repatriation of the forcibly displaced Rohingya people, sheltered in Bangladesh, to their homeland.

The Head of the State came up with the call as new resident ambassador of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to Bangladesh Kyaw Soe Moe presented his credentials to him at the Bangabhaban in the capital on Thursday.

“The existing Rohingya crisis is a big problem for Bangladesh . . . Hopefully, Myanmar will create the environment so that these forcibly displaced Rohingyas can return safely and honorably to their motherland,” the President told the envoy.

Later, President’s Press Secretary Md Joynal Abedin briefed the newsmen on the event.

Welcoming the new ambassador, the President said being the closest neighboring country, Bangladesh always prioritizes maintaining good bilateral relations with Myanmar.

Besides, he said, Bangladesh always prioritizes the development of relations with different countries of the world.

President Shahabuddin expressed the hope that bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Myanmar would expand further during the new envoy’s tenure.

Noting that both the countries have a lot of potentials to explore, he said Bangladesh has a long-standing trade and investment relationship with Myanmar and both the countries should avail of these opportunities.

Mentioning that Bangladesh will take over as the chair of BIMSTEC next September, the President said Bangladesh would work closely with Myanmar to strengthen BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation), reports BSS.

Bangladesh wants to become a dialogue partner of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), the President said and sought the support and cooperation of Myanmar in this regard.

The ambassador sought the cooperation of the President in fulfilling his duties in Dhaka.

He said his country is working to solve the problems caused by the Rohingyas from Myanmar.
The Myanmar ambassador said he will inform his government about Bangladesh’s concerns in this regard and will take initiatives to solve the crisis.

President’s office Secretary Md. Wahidul Islam Khan, Military Secretary Major General Mohammad Adil Chowdhury and officials concerned of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were present during the meeting.

Earlier, on his arrival at Bangabhaban, a contingent of the President’s Guard Regiment (PGR) provided a ‘guard of honour’ to the ambassador as part of the ceremony.