The US has strengthened ties with the South Asian countries in the last few years mainly to counter China’s growing influence in the region.
Apart from boosting ties with regional powerhouses (such as India and Pakistan), Washington has also started maintaining closer ties with other countries in the region which are more or less dependent on Beijing.
Now, the US has decided to provide a well-equipped naval ship to Bangladesh. Confirming the news in Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, US Ambassador Dan W Mozena on Tuesday said that the main aim of the proposed move was to enhance the strength of the Bangladeshi Navy. According to him, Bangladesh will receive the vessel in November as part of the bilateral military co-operation to bolster Bangladesh’s maritime security.
“I am eagerly waiting for November when the 378ft-long ship is due to arrive in the Bay of Bengal,” said Mozena. According to him, the vessel, named “Conqueror of the Sea” (or “Samudra Joi” in Bengali language), will be the “most capable” military vessel in the Bangladeshi Navy. The ambassador stressed that the Navy would successfully defend Bangladesh’s maritime boundary with the help of the vessel. He, meanwhile, revealed that the concerned authorities in the US recently trained some Bangladeshi Navy personnel to man the ship and to use it in a better way in an attempt to prevent robbery, piracy, human trafficking and transportation of illegal arms.
Meanwhile, the ambassador has admitted that both Bangladesh and the US have common strategic and economic interests in the Asia-Pacific region that would become the fastest growing economic zone in the 21st century.
When asked whether the US will build a military base in Bangladesh, Mozena insisted that Washington had no such plan in the near future.
Professor Ataur Rahman, the President of Bangladesh Political Association, has welcomed the US’ decision, saying that the Bay of Bengal is the lifeline of Bangladesh as far as the economy and security are concerned. – in Servia
