United News of Bangladesh

President Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Wednesday said there is scope to make the Bangladesh-US Agreement on Reciprocal Trade more balanced and mutually beneficial, taking into account the economic realities and interests of both countries. The President said the agreement marked an important step towards expanding trade relations between the two countries. He came up with the remarks when US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent T. Christensen paid a courtesy call on him at Bangabhaban. During the meeting, the President recalled the past US investment and cooperation in the development of Bangladesh’s agriculture sector, including support for the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute and Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute. He urged the US to further increase investment and cooperation in the country’s agriculture sector. The President also highlighted the investment and significant role of US-based Chevron in Bangladesh’s energy sector and called for increased US investment in the country’s energy sector. He said Bangladesh has significant potential in various sectors, including information technology, infrastructure, healthcare and high-tech industries. The President also emphasised the importance of technology and skills transfer. He urged the United States to review and simplify the existing ‘visa bond’ system for Bangladeshi businesspeople and genuine tourists travelling to the US. He sought continued US support for ensuring the safe, dignified and sustainable repatriation of the Rohingyas to their homeland. The US ambassador assured the President of continued cooperation and stressed the need to strengthen cooperation among ASEAN countries in this regard. During the meeting, Ambassador Christensen congratulated Mirza Fakhrul Islam on assuming the office of President and conveyed his best wishes to him. Thanking the ambassador, the President said the US is one of Bangladesh’s important development and trade partners. He said the existing trade relations between the two countries have been playing an important role in Bangladesh’s economic development. Bangladesh believes in maintaining friendly relations with all countries and expanding bilateral and multilateral cooperation, the President said. He said Bangladesh attaches the highest importance to the principles of independence, sovereignty, national interest, mutual respect and equality in international relations. The President expressed hope that bilateral relations with the US would be further expanded in the days ahead through mutual respect and protection of shared interests. The US ambassador reaffirmed his country’s interest in further deepening and broadening its relations with Bangladesh. The President’s secretaries and senior government officials were present at the meeting.

Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman on Wednesday rejected claims that the reciprocal trade agreement between Bangladesh and the US was signed abruptly just days before the recently held national election. He said the matter had been discussed in advance with the leadership of the country’s two major political parties - BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami- and both of which had agreed to the deal prior to its signing. "The US Trade Representative spoke to the heads of our two key parties before the elections and they also agreed to it. So it's not like we did this in the dark,” Dr Khalilur said in response to a question on whether there had been any pressure to expedite the signing of the deal ahead of the recently held national election. The Foreign Minister said there are entry and exit clauses and the government can review it if it desires so.  US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Paul Kapur, who met the Foreign Minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, underscored the importance of implementing the provisions of the agreement on ‘reciprocal trade’ to foster greater bilateral trade and investment. The Foreign Minister reiterated the government’s commitment to policy continuity, particularly in the economic domain. Assistant Secretary Kapur, in the meeting, discussed key US priorities in Bangladesh, expanding market access for American businesses, strengthening cooperation on illegal immigration, and deepening collaboration on regional security and counterterrorism. The deal says Bangladesh shall endeavor to increase purchases of US military equipment and limit military equipment purchases from certain countries; and shall endeavor to facilitate the increase of purchases by its national flag carrier (Biman Bangladesh Airline) of U.S. civilian aircraft, parts, and services. Bangladesh will submit a full and complete notification to the WTO of all subsidies that it provides, as required under Article 25.1 of the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures within six months of entry into force of this agreement. Biman Bangladesh Airline intends to purchase 14 Boeing aircraft, plus a purchase option of additional aircraft. The deal also says Bangladesh shall endeavor to purchase, or to facilitate the purchase by Bangladeshi companies, of U.S. energy, including long-term offtake agreements for U.S. liquefied natural gas, with an estimated value of $15 billion over 15 years. Khalilur, who played a leading role on Bangladesh's side in negotiations with the US before the agreement, said the deal was not concluded just three days before the elections but a year ago, in February 2025. The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) recently said the reciprocal trade agreement between the US and Bangladesh is “highly discriminatory” and must be revoked. “We are stunned and bewildered….I do not know how a government could enter into such an agreement,” said CPD Research Director Khondaker Golam Moazzem at a media briefing on the social and economic policies of the new government for the first 180 days and beyond.

China's imports of soybeans surged in November following the announcement of an interim trade deal with the United States.