Yunus seeks Malaysia’s clout for resolving Rohingya crisis

Bangladesh hopes to leverage Malaysia's influence as Asean chair to bolster international efforts in resolving the long-standing Rohingya refugee crisis, Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus said in an exclusive interview with Malaysian state media Bernama.

"We are hoping that Malaysia will exercise its influence throughout the negotiation process to help us overcome this problem," he told Bernama before concluding his 3-day official visit to Malaysia on August 13.

Yunus warned that the crisis has worsened amid ongoing clashes in Myanmar's Rakhine State between the Arakan Army and government forces, triggering fresh waves of Rohingyas fleeing across the border into Bangladesh.

"In the last 18 months alone, 150,000 new Rohingyas have arrived, in addition to the 1.2 million already in Bangladesh. It [the crisis] is becoming more and more acute. And worst of all, the US has cut off all funds to maintain them. So that is a huge problem for us," he said.

He added that three international conferences on the Rohingya issue will be convened in the coming months to seek a sustainable solution.

The first is scheduled in Cox's Bazar at the end of this month, coinciding with the eighth anniversary of the Rohingya exodus in 2017. The second high-level meeting will take place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September, while the third is planned for year-end in Doha, Qatar.

Repatriation efforts have made little progress amid armed conflict in Myanmar since the 2021 coup.