Myanmar situation deepening security problems for Dhaka: US
The situation in Myanmar isn't improving and this might heighten security risks for Bangladesh and neighboring regions, said US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu.
He warned both Dhaka and Delhi that the security situation born out of the Rohingya refugee crisis and the general instability in Myanmar will worsen and continue to have implications for its neighbours.
"It is something we have to watch out for and enable our partners in the region, in this case Bangladesh and India, to cope with those stresses without it boiling over into instability in their countries as well," Lu said.
While speaking at an event in Washington recently on "The Indo-Pacific Strategy in Action: Commemorating the Second Anniversary", Lu emphasised the need for empowering partners in the region.
Acknowledging Dhaka's remarkable generosity in hosting over a million people from Myanmar for years, Lu said Washington also put significant efforts to engage and collaborate with Bangladesh to tackle the crisis.
"I have spent a lot of times on Bangladesh, [I saw] the effects of instability in Burma and what it means for the region," Lu, who visited Rohingya refugee camps, said.
Lu also highlighted the international community's efforts to solve the crisis by finding a way for the safe repatriation of the refugees back to Myanmar.
Lu said that the Indo-Pacific strategy is based on the premise that US and like-minded partners would try to offer a better proposition to solve crises in the region.
As the most dynamic and fastest-growing region on earth, the Indo-Pacific is a leading priority for US foreign policy and essential to global security and prosperity.
In 2022, the US inaugurated its Indo-Pacific Strategy, which lays out a shared vision for a free and open region that is more connected, prosperous, secure and resilient.
Comments