Western countries are trying to engage Bangladesh in combating the global rise of extreme fundamentalism against the backdrop of growing threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and ongoing Syrian crisis.
Britain, France, Germany and Turkey are set to organise a ministerial meeting today on the sidelines of the 69th session of the UN General Assembly and have invited Bangladesh to take part in the meeting.
The Dhaka Tribune has obtained a copy of the invitation.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, British Foreign Secretary William Hammond, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will attend the meeting.
“We will send a representative to the meeting,” said an official of the Foreign Ministry.
Bangladesh has taken a position to strongly condemn any terrorist activity by anyone, he said.
“We have supported a resolution adopted recently by the UN Human Rights Commission where it has deplored and condemned the activities of Islamic States,” he added.
He, however, said Bangladesh would not support any military intervention against any country or organisation unless it is approved and backed by the United Nations.
The government always promotes and supports territorial integrity and stable conditions in Iraq and Syria, he said.
“We have taken the position and made it public that we do not support any move or initiative that has a negative impact on the territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria or create any instability in those countries,” the official said.
The government on several occasions issued press releases on Iraq and Syria and expressed its concern over the conflicting situation in these countries.
The invitation of today’s ministerial meeting said the crisis is a growing threat to international security.
“The growing threat to regional and international security from extremism, in particular from ISIL, only further emphasises the importance of supporting a moderate voice against extremism and the forces which fuel this,” it said.
The meeting will demonstrate the international community’s collective resolve and unity in addressing the Syria crisis and the ISIL threat.
Meanwhile, in an interview with MSNBC, John Kerry said they had more than 50 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait who joined the coalition to fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and ISIL.