United News of Bangladesh

Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Sunday (9th November 2025) said one of the major accomplishments of their foreign policy over the past 15 months has been establishing strong relations with the US agricultural economy and the farm lobby. "The interim government has laid the foundation for this promising new chapter in Bangladesh-US relations," he said. Looking ahead, Alam said, Bangladesh will be able successfully negotiate even greater tariff reductions from the US as the trade gap shrinks. "Our garment exporters already have the capacity to purchase the entirety of US cotton exports. Once we establish ourselves as a key U.S. trading partner, we will have no need to engage costly lobby groups in Washington — we will have the US farm lobby, which has considerable political strength, to advocate for us with US governmental entities," he said. "Japan, China, Southeast Asian nations, and Western European countries have all prospered through robust trade with the United States. Now, we too can follow that path," Alam said in a message shared from his verified Facebook account. Bangladesh eyes Japan’s labour market as demand for 11mn foreign workers looms A few months after Dr Khalilur Rahman was appointed as the High Representative on Rohingya Affairs (and later as National Security Adviser, Chief Adviser) Professor Muhammad Yunus sent him to Washington DC in February to build ties with the new U.S. administration. Dr Khalil, a veteran career diplomat and an eminent economist who spent decades at a senior level at a UN organisation specialising in global trade policy, quickly connected with key figures in the American agricultural sector, he said. Alam said Bangladesh is a major importer of agricultural products, while the US is one of the world’s largest exporters of soybeans, wheat, cotton, and corn. "Access to US agricultural market is potentially a crucial aspect of our food security, which is one of our key national security concerns," he said. It also would allow us to diversify food import sources and thereby to avoid potential situations where certain sourcing countries might weaponise our food dependence on them. Ambassador Mushfiqul promotes Bangladesh-Mexico trade ties at Querétaro Dr Khalil helped strengthen the bridge between Bangladeshi importers and the US farm lobby — a relationship that played a crucial role in our successful recent tariff negotiations with Washington. "Besides, his successful efforts as our lead negotiator contributed to securing competitive tariff rates that have effectively safeguarded Bangladesh’s garment industry," Alam said. Earlier this week, Bangladeshi importers pledged to purchase over one billion dollars’ worth of US farm products — a "win-win outcome" for both countries and a milestone in Bangladesh-US relations, said the Press Secretary. With China sourcing most of its soybeans from Brazil, Bangladesh can, in a meaningful way, help fill the gap left by Chinese importers, he said. This growing agricultural trade partnership, Alam said, is now taking center stage in the two nations’ diplomatic engagement, a vision championed by the interim government. Read more: Bangladesh firms ink $1.25b deal to expand US soy imports

Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Saturday (8th November 2025) said good governance and reforms cannot be achieved overnight, noting that in some countries such reforms took more than a decade of discussions. Addressing a programme organised by the Citizen Platform at a city hotel on Saturday afternoon, he said the national election would be held in the first half of February as the Chief Adviser and other advisers are actively working to ensure it. “There’s no uncertainty about the election. Discussions on reforms may take place afterward,” he said. Regarding the voting system, Shafiqul Alam said if political parties fail to take a decision, the interim government will make one. Responding to criticism that farmers, women and workers were not consulted on the July Charter, he questioned, “Don’t political parties represent these people?” Misinformation big threat to democracy: Shafiqul Alam Shafiqul also urged political parties to take a clear stance regarding ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “Everyone must make their position clear. Sheikh Hasina again said today that those who took part in the July movement are terrorists. Awami League wants to return to power by branding 180 million people as terrorists and committing killings in the name of fighting terrorism,” he said. The Press Secretary said creating jobs in the country will be a major challenge for the next government as artificial intelligence is reshaping the job market everywhere. Mentioning that revamping development projects will also be a challenge, Shafiqul said, “Five billion dollars have been invested in railway projects — all of which somehow connect to Gopalganj. These were done under Sheikh Hasina’s corrupt system.” Read more: Govt watching Hasina’s actions; she’s Bengal's ‘butcher’: Press Secretary