Foreign Minister Dr. Hasan Mahmood attended the joint reception of Bangladesh and Austria at the UN Headquarters as the Chief Guest on the occasion of International Peacekeepers Day.
According to a press release received in Dhaka today, at the reception held on Thursday local time in New York, the Foreign Minister reiterated the pledge of Bangladesh’s continued support and cooperation to contribute the maximum to the UN peacekeeping operations. He said, “According to the foreign policy of our Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh has always been at the forefront of peace efforts at the United Nations.”
Dr. Hasan Mahmud said that the Bangladeshi peacekeepers are performing their duty in UN peacekeeping with great sincerity, professionalism and devotion.
Expressing deep condolences to the families and relatives of all those killed in peacekeeping operations, the foreign minister said that the continuous increase in global conflicts and violence is a growing threat to peace and therefore there is no alternative to strengthening peacekeeping operations.
At the end of the speech, the Foreign Minister accompanied the Under-Secretary General of the United Nations Peacekeeping Program Jean-Pierre Lacroix and Austria’s Charge of the Affairs Stefan Preterhofer to 64 military, police and civilian peacekeepers from 34 countries who gave themselves for international peace and security in 2023He paid deep respect to Namphal.Before the ceremony, Ambassador Muhammad Abdul Muhith, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations, received the ‘Daag Hammershold Medal’ from the UN Secretary General in 2023 on behalf of the two martyred peacekeepers of Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, in the afternoon in the OIC conference room of the UN headquarters, Foreign Minister Dr. Hasan Mahmood informed the ambassadors of the OIC countries in New York about the situation of the Rohingyas in Myanmar.
He praised the Organization of Islamic Cooperation for being at the forefront of international efforts to alleviate the plight of the Rohingya.
The foreign minister expressed deep concern over the escalation of conflict in Myanmar’s Rakhine State and called on the OIC ambassadors to continue their solidarity in efforts to ensure the safe and sustainable repatriation of the nearly 1.3 million Rohingya displaced from Myanmar and sheltered in Bangladesh with full citizenship rights to their homeland Myanmar.
Permanent representatives of OIC countries Saudi Arabia, Gambia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Egypt, Indonesia thanked the Foreign Minister of Bangladesh for this timely briefing. They appreciated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s generosity in providing shelter to Rohingya refugees and expressed full support to Bangladesh’s demand for repatriation of Rohingyas.
Foreign Minister staying in New York on a two-day official visit from May 30. Hasan will hold further meetings with top UN officials and representatives of member states.
