Special Correspondent, Dhaka:
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s five-day visit to New York for the 81st United Nations General Assembly combines his maiden address to the world body with a dense schedule of bilateral, multilateral, and economic engagements, giving the shortened trip a wider diplomatic scope.
The Prime Minister left Dhaka on September 21 with a 26-member delegation and is scheduled to remain in New York until September 25. His first address to the UN General Assembly as prime minister is scheduled for the afternoon of September 24.
The visit comes with several issues on Bangladesh’s diplomatic agenda, including climate change, the Rohingya crisis, economic cooperation, maternal and newborn health, and reform of the multilateral system.
On September 23, Tarique is scheduled to participate in meetings on global inequality and climate action, while a Rohingya-focused side event will provide an opportunity for Bangladesh to seek stronger international cooperation for the early repatriation of forcibly displaced Rohingyas to Myanmar. Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam said Bangladesh would also highlight climate finance, adaptation, technology transfer, loss and damage, and climate justice.
September 24 will be the busiest day. The Prime Minister will deliver opening remarks at a high-level meeting on the threats posed by sea-level rise before attending a Bangladesh-hosted side event on maternal and newborn health and midwifery. His UNGA address later in the day will provide the main platform for presenting the new government’s priorities internationally.
The bilateral track is equally significant. Tarique is scheduled to meet Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on September 24, alongside planned talks with the prime ministers of Thailand, Croatia, Bhutan, Haiti, and Kuwait’s Crown Prince. The discussions are expected to cover political and economic relations, trade and investment, development cooperation, and the Rohingya issue.
His meeting with Shehbaz carries particular diplomatic relevance as Bangladesh and Pakistan seek to expand engagement after years of limited political interaction. The talks will therefore add a regional dimension to the Prime Minister’s otherwise broad UNGA program.
The visit also has a strong economic-diplomacy component. Tarique is scheduled to meet representatives of Meta and Wall Street, including at a breakfast hosted by JPMorgan, with discussions expected to focus on investment, manufacturing, infrastructure, technology, skills, and employment.
He is also scheduled to meet UN Secretary-General António Guterres and senior international officials, including representatives dealing with Myanmar, refugees, and human rights.
With the visit shortened to five days, the schedule leaves limited room for extended bilateral diplomacy. Instead, the government appears to be using the UNGA platform to combine Bangladesh’s multilateral priorities with targeted political and economic outreach in a concentrated program. The prime minister is scheduled to leave New York for Dhaka late on September 25.
