State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam on Sunday said the government remains better prepared in 2023 to achieve its goals overcoming the challenges both from domestic and international fronts.

"If it seems to be more challenging, I would say we remain better prepared for that," he said while talking to a small group of journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The state minister described the year 2022 a very successful year in terms of its engagement with the international partners with opening of new markets.

He, however, said it is a failure that the Rohingya repatriation is yet to begin.

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Shahriar Alam said they saw a kind of “overenthusiasm” (from diplomats) at the end of 2022 but they are handling it diplomatically.

He hoped that everyone will remain respectful to their “rules of engagements” as Bangladesh does not oppose those recommendations and advice which are beneficial for Bangladesh.

“Everyone appreciates that Bangladesh remains engaged and listens to….,” said the State Minister.

Regarding democracy, he said there is no “fit for all” formula for democracy and everyone knows it and Bangladesh is doing much better compared to other countries.

Responding to a question, Shahriar said the government remains engaged with the USA to withdraw sanctions on the Rab as an institution at least keeping in mind that Rab played a very strong role in combating terrorism and militancy in the country sacrificing their lives.

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"Painfully, it's a slow process. We will strengthen our efforts," he said.

He said there is a need for a law to deal with misinformation and other issues but surely the Digital Security Act is not for harassing journalists.

Responding to a question on human rights issues, the State Minister said the UN member states know Bangladesh’s true intention.

Asked why the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had to share a non-paper note with foreign missions in Dhaka centering BNP’s December 10 programme, he said there was nothing wrong in it. “It’s a proactive engagement as they (diplomats) might have asked the questions on the issue the following day.”

The government says they shared the information with the foreign missions stationed in Dhaka to leave no room for "misinformation" and "confusion."