A curious coincidence

The US decision to include Bangladesh in the 'terror-risk list' coincides with the deadline set by the US government and American oil company Unocal to decide on gas export by December 2002.

According to a report published in The Statesman, an Indian newspaper, on December 3, both the US government and Unocal set the yearend as the deadline for Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to decide on gas export.

Dhaka has been warned that a negative response would result in a drastic fall in American aid and investment in Bangladesh, The Statesman added.

Last year, US Ambassador Mary Ann Peters repeatedly said at public programmes that Bangladesh should urgently decide on gas export or miss the "window of opportunity" to export to India.

Because of the pressure, the government was more or less ready to announce gas export, according to some top-level policymakers.

Even, in the first week of December, these policymakers had indicated to The Daily Star that the gas export issue was just awaiting a mere announcement.

However, baseless and untrue statements of Indian politicians and media reports portraying Bangladesh as a "haven of terrorists" held back the announcement, they said. Bangladesh officials dismissed the statements and reports as baseless.

The gas export issue was apparently shelved following the Mymensingh bomb blasts on December 8. When a couple of Indian 'spies' were arrested in Mymensingh and Sylhet, allegations surfaced that it might have been a handiwork of Indian insurgents.

In January 2002, the government formed two committees to deal with gas reserve and utilisation. It was thought that the committees would put forward the export option as one of the profitable propositions.

However, none of the reports, resting at the prime ministerial level for months, subscribes to immediate gas export.