US Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal is expected to come to Dhaka on an orientation trip this month.
“She will be in the region in the middle of this month and we are trying to find a way to accommodate Dhaka in her trip,” director general of the America Wing Mahfuzur Rahman told the Dhaka Tribune.
Biswal was sworn in as the assistant secretary on October 21 replacing Robert O Blake.
Both Dhaka and Washington are trying to work out a possible schedule for her, said another foreign ministry official.
The foreign ministry officials are to find a convenient schedule for the US assistant secretary’s meetings with Bangladesh officials, who will be busy with the high profile visit of Malaysian Prime Minister Nazib Rezak to Dhaka and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to Colombo in the middle of November.
Bangladesh ambassador to US Akramul Qader was schedule to meet Biswal Thursday afternoon Washington time.
“We have been known for a long time but this will be my first meeting with her as the capacity of assistant secretary,” Qader said.
Biswal worked as assistant administrator for Asia at the USAID.
Her possible visit coincides with the recent activities of US ambassador in Dhaka Dan Mozena who in the recent weeks passed busy times meeting political leaders including Khaleda Zia, HM Ershad, Mirza Fakhrul Islam and Syed Ashraful Islam, among others.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador Mozena is leaving Dhaka for Washington on Friday to meet his family.
“While he is in the United States, he will also have consultations in Washington, D.C. and then visit Michigan to continue his outreach to the Bangladeshi-American Diaspora, civil society, and business leaders where he will discuss all aspects of our broad bilateral partnership with Bangladesh,” said a US embassy statement.