C T Online Desk: The United States welcomed the announcement of an interim government and urge any transition be conducted in accordance with Bangladesh’s laws.
State Department’s spokesperson Matthew Miller at the daily briefing in Washington on Monday said that they are monitoring the situation carefully as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned from her position and departed Bangladesh.
” The United States stands with the people of Bangladesh. We urge all parties to refrain from further violence. Too many lives have been lost over the course of the past several weeks, and we urge calm and restraint in the days ahead.”
He said they are deeply saddened about the reports of human rights abuses, casualties, and injuries over the weekend and past weeks. “We share our deepest condolences with those who lost loved ones and those who are suffering.”
Replying to a question, he said: “We are focused now on supporting an end to the violence and for accountability. All decisions regarding the interim government should be made with respect to democratic principles, rule of law, and the will of the Bangladeshi people.”
Asked whether the US would allow her as she will leave for any Western country from India, he said: “I’m not aware of any request of that nature.”
“I have made – as I made clear, what we are calling for today is an end to the violence and for accountability. Now, as to what accountability looks like, that’s something that should take place under Bangladeshi law. Obviously anyone responsible for acts of violence, acts that break the law, should be held accountable for them.”
“It is vital that we have full and transparent investigations to ensure accountability for these deaths.”
Asked about the US financial support to Bangladesh, he said, in Fiscal Year 2023, the United States provided over 212 million in bilateral economic, development, and health assistance to Bangladesh.
“We have provided nearly two billion in humanitarian assistance to support Rohingya refugees since August of 2017.”
Asked about the army’s role whether is there any concern that an interim role could become more than an interim role, Miller said with respect to their role over the past several days, we have seen the reports that the army resisted calls to crack down on the protesters, and if those reports are true, certainly that is something that we would encourage.
“We made clear I think for several weeks now that people have a legitimate right to protest and to peacefully assemble, and we opposed any kind of violent crackdown. So if it is true, in fact, that the army resisted calls to crack down on lawful protesters, that would be a positive development.”
“With respect to where we go from here, what we want to see is democratic order. We want to see the Bangladeshi people choose their own government, and that’s what we’ll be looking for in the days and weeks ahead.”
