DHAKA — Bangladesh's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday assigned
Secretary Ruhul Alam Siddique to carry out the routine works assigned to
Foreign Secretary Jashim Uddin until further notice as the top diplomat has
left his responsibilities.
Ruhul Alam Siddique is from the 11th batch of Bangladesh
Civil Service. He was High Commissioner of Bangladesh to Pakistan from October
2020 to December 2024.
Siddique also served in the Bangladesh High Commission in
New Delhi before his assignment as the Deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh
in Karachi.
The order will come into effect on Friday.
It is relevant to mention that Jashim Uddin, a career
foreign service officer, had lately stopped his engagements as Foreign
Secretary after not being in sync with the Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus - who
currently heads the interim government in the country - and Foreign Affairs
Advisor Touhid Hossain.
Jashim Uddin was appointed as 27th Foreign Secretary of
Bangladesh in September 2024.
Secretary (East) Nazrul Islam had taken on several key
responsibilities on the verbal instructions of Foreign Advisor Hossain, local
media reported earlier this week.
Notably, Nazrul Islam had led the Bangladesh delegation
at a Foreign Secretary-level meeting with Japan in Tokyo on May 15.
This marked the first time in five decades that such a
meeting was led by someone other than the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh. Over
the past couple of weeks, Jashim Uddin had reportedly not been present at any
inter-ministerial meetings with two other officials of Secretary rank
representing the ministry.
Sources confirmed that Jashim Uddin had differences of
opinion with key policy makers over foreign policy priorities, especially
regarding the Rohingya crisis and the Rakhine Corridor, which sealed his fate.
Jashim Uddin opposed this initiative of Humanitarian
Corridor and safe zone for Rohingya refugees being pushed by Yunus and his
National Security Advisor (NSA) Khalilur Rahman and endorsed by the United
Nations. His views aligned with the military leadership who fear that the
Humanitarian Corridor could compromise the sovereignty of Bangladesh without
any strategic benefits. At the same time, non-state external actors could
infiltrate the sensitive border regions and the Humanitarian Corridor might see
an influx of refugees rather than repatriation.
He also led the Bangladeshi side at the FOC-level talks
in Dhaka with Pakistani counterpart Amna Baloch on April 17. During the talks,
Bangladesh raised the issue of financial claim to the tune of USD 4.32 billion
from Pakistan as a fair share from the assets of undivided Pakistan before
1971.
Bangladesh also demanded USD 200 million (foreign aid from countries and
agencies) to East Pakistan during the extremely deadly Bhola cyclone. Jashim
Uddin had raised the issue of financial claim to the tune of USD 4.32 billion
from Pakistan as a fair share from the assets of undivided Pakistan before
1971. Also, Bangladesh demanded USD 200 million (foreign aid from countries
& agencies) to then East Pakistan during the extremely deadly Bhola
cyclone.
Jashim Uddin's firm resolve to confront the issue
directly during the high-level diplomatic visit after a hiatus of 15 years did
create frustration amongst Bangladeshi and Pakistani officials. It may be
pointed out that Jashim Uddin's isolation ripened within the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and Chief Advisor's Office.
Analysts believe that the Yunus administration, supported
by the hardline pro-Islamist lobbies, is desperate in cosying up with Pakistan
cherishing the visions of a stricter, 'Shariat-dominated' order which is
emerging in "New Bangladesh."
