US Senior Director for South Asia, National Security Council Rear Admiral Eileen Laubacher, who is currently on a four day-visit to Bangladesh, met Foreign Secretary (senior secretary) Ambassador Masud Bin Momen at the State Guest House Padma on Monday afternoon.

Senior Director Laubacher praised the bold decision of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for allowing in and providing shelter to over a million forcibly-displaced Myanmar nationals who were fleeing genocide.

The Foreign Secretary appreciated the US Government for supporting the resolutions in the United Nations related to the Rohingya population and also for recognizing the genocide. 

Furthermore, they discussed about different bilateral issues of mutual interests and priorities, particularly in the sectors of humanitarian assistance, Rohingya repatriation and resettlement, defense cooperation, indo-pacific strategy, development cooperation, maritime safety and security, strengthening capacities of the law enforcing agencies, cyber security, etc.

The other members of the visiting US delegation Colonel Brian Luti, Director for South Asia Regional Affairs at the National Security Council, and Scott Urbom, Office Director for Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka in the South Central Asia Bureau at the U.S. Department of State, Helen LaFave, Deputy Chief of Mission, and Arturo Hines, Chief of Political section of the Embassy of the United States in Dhaka from the US side and Secretary (Maritime Affairs) Rear Admiral (retd.) Md Khurshed Alam, Nayem Uddin Ahmed, Director General (Americas), Miah Md. Mainul Kabir, Director General (Myanmar Wing), Khandker Masudul Alam, Director General (North America), Hasan Abdullah Towhid, Director (Americas) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from Bangladesh side were present during the meeting.

Earlier, the US delegation visited the Rohingya Camps in Cox’s Bazar on Sunday, 08 January 2023.

The delegation visited the facilities in the Rohingya camps including the educational and cultural opportunities there.