PM not attending BRICS summit, no delegation either: Kobir

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir said on Thursday that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will not attend the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, and that Bangladesh will not send any representative either.
"How are we supposed to go? Has anyone from the Bangladesh government been invited? Our prime minister has not been invited. Who told you that the prime minister had been invited? The chair of BIMSTEC has been invited," he told reporters after attending the inaugural session of an international conference on the Rohingya crisis in the capital.
Speaking about the prime minister's visit to India, the state minister said Tarique Rahman's first visit to the country could not be a multilateral one.
"The government is working to arrange a bilateral visit by the prime minister to India when the time is conducive," he said.
The 18th BRICS Summit is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on 12-13 September. Bangladesh is not a member of BRICS, but India had invited Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, as current chair of BIMSTEC, to attend an outreach session at the summit. His possible participation had been the subject of speculation for several weeks, while India had earlier said it had received no confirmation from Dhaka.
The Department of International Relations and Centre for Genocide Studies at Dhaka University organised the day-long conference, titled "Protracted Rohingya Crisis: The Search for a Comprehensive Approach", in collaboration with the Foreign Service Academy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Call for global action on Rohingya crisis
Addressing the inaugural session as chief guest, Kobir called on the international community to take more effective action to resolve the Rohingya crisis.
"Bangladesh did not create the Rohingya crisis. Therefore, the responsibility for resolving this crisis cannot rest solely with Bangladesh. The international community must move beyond merely expressing solidarity and step forward to share responsibility as partners and ensure sustained political engagement," he said.
He said funding for humanitarian assistance to Rohingyas must be ensured and sustained, alongside support for host communities. Diplomatic discussions with Myanmar, he added, must focus on addressing the root causes of displacement, since humanitarian assistance addresses only the consequences.
Bangladesh would use its position at the UN General Assembly to keep the Rohingya crisis "at the centre of global diplomatic discourse," he said, reiterating that Dhaka's position remained the safe, voluntary, dignified and sustainable repatriation of Rohingyas to Myanmar. 
"Repatriation does not simply mean crossing the border and returning. It means returning to an environment where people can live with confidence in their security, rights, dignity and future," he said.
Kobir noted that Bangladesh has sheltered more than a million forcibly displaced citizens of Myanmar despite pressure on its economy, environment, public services and national security, but added that this humanitarian responsibility should not be regarded as an unlimited obligation.

Dhaka condemns Israeli settlement plan
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement on Thursday, voiced strong opposition to Israel's plan to expand settlements in the E1 area of the occupied West Bank, calling it a violation of international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions. 
It warned that the move would further fragment occupied Palestinian territory, making a viable and contiguous Palestinian state harder to achieve.
Bangladesh urged Israel to halt all settlement activity, reaffirmed the Palestinian people's right to an independent, sovereign state on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, and called on the international community to step up diplomatic pressure.

Envoys of Palestine, Norway call on state minister
Palestine's Ambassador to Bangladesh Yousef SY Ramadan called on Kobir on Thursday, thanking Bangladesh for its continued support. 
Kobir reaffirmed Dhaka's solidarity with the Palestinian people and voiced concern over the E1 settlement plan; the two sides also discussed the situation in Gaza and bilateral cooperation.
Separately, Kobir met Norwegian Ambassador Hakon Arald Gulbrandsen and sought stronger Norwegian engagement in Bangladesh's renewable energy sector as part of the country's green transition. 
The Norwegian envoy expressed interest in collaborating on renewable energy, with talks also covering trade, maritime affairs, fisheries, climate change, technology transfer and sustainable ship recycling.