On November 22, 2023 Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova during briefing accused US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter D. Haas of “grossly interfering in Bangladesh’s internal affairs”. In her statement, Ms. Zakharova said, “At the end of October, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas met a member of the local opposition to discuss plans for organizing anti-government rallies. Such actions amount to nothing less than gross interference in internal affairs.
“We have repeatedly highlighted the attempts by the US and its allies to influence the internal political processes in Bangladesh under the guise of ensuring that the upcoming parliamentary elections in the country are ‘transparent and inclusive'”.
The Russian Embassy in Dhaka posted this statement on its verified Facebook page on November 22, 2023.
Denying Russian allegations of interfering in Bangladesh internal affairs, the US State Department said it “supports free and fair elections in Bangladesh”.
It further said, “the statement upholds the commitment to ongoing engagement with the Bangladesh government, opposition, civil society and other stakeholders”.
The US State Department’s spokesperson said, “We are aware of Zakharova’s deliberate mischaracterization of US foreign policy and Ambassador Haas’s meetings. The United States does not support any political party in Bangladesh. Nor does the United States favor one political party over another”.
“We want what the Bangladeshi people themselves want: free and fair elections, which are conducted in a peaceful manner”.
It further said, “to support that shared goal of free and fair elections conducted in a peaceful manner, the US embassy personnel engage and will continue to engage with the government, opposition, civil society and other stakeholders to urge them to work together for the benefit of the Bangladeshi people”.
Expressing dismay at the statement of Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, ultra-Islamist Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said, the statement made by Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova contradicts the ‘desire of the Bangladeshi people for the restoration of democracy’.
In a press release signed by BNP’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, BNP has criticized the statement
“No such unexpected and unprecedented allegations have been raised previously that any foreign diplomat has assisted the BNP in organizing a rally. Making such baseless statements goes against the desire of the Bangladeshi people for the restoration of democracy”.
Describing the Russian spokesperson’s statement regarding the US Ambassador Peter Hass as “wrong” and “misinterpreted”, Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said, “Awami League has tainted history by snatching people’s voting rights through manipulated elections in both 2014 and 2018”.
“No participatory and acceptable election is possible by maintaining the current government led by the current prime minister”, he also said.
He claimed that the public has “moral support” for their “peaceful demonstration programs”.
Terming Russia as an age-old friend of Bangladesh, Rizvi said that people of this country believe that Russia would honor the democratic sentiment of Bangladeshi people.
“Moreover, no other country would offer unexpected support to the incumbent government by going against the public desire”, he added.
Although US State Department and BNP almost in a similar tone have rejected Maria Zakharova’s statement, it is well-perceived by majority of the people in Bangladesh that Washington has been unduly interfering into internal affairs of Bangladesh and even been attempting to blackmail the ruling Awami League and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina through visa restriction threats. Everyone in the country is fully aware of open and secret meetings and communications between American ambassador Peter Haas and leaders of BNP, Jamaat and even Jatiya Party. Most importantly, the Biden administration remains absolutely silent on ongoing destructive and terrorist acts of BNP, Jamaat and leftist forces in Bangladesh during their ongoing blockades and general strikes, while these parties are attempting to establish a reign of terror in the country. As BNP in particular does not have anyone who would form the government if it gets people’s mandate during the January 7, 2024 general elections, this party has only option of continuing terrorist acts, with the ulterior agenda of destabilizing democratic process and push the country either towards any unconstitutional regime or a Sharia nation through Ayatollah Rohullah Khomeini type “Islamic revolt”. Key policymakers in Washington are fully aware of such realities and still they are continuing naked hostility towards the ruling Awami League as the Biden administration actually wants to turn Bangladesh into its colony by pushing the country towards a neo-Taliban state.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova’s statement once again reminds of the Soviet Union’s bold steps in favor of Bangali freedom fighters during Bangladesh’s liberation war in 1971, when the United States made frantic bids in favor of Pakistani occupation forces and attempted to foil Bangladesh’s war of independence.
The recent accusations by Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova against US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter D. Haas, claiming “gross interference in Bangladesh’s internal affairs”, add a new layer to international relations in the region.