No deal with US or any country without ensuring national interest: Shama Obaed

Amid speculation over a likely defence deal with the US, Bangladesh on Saturday said any deal, whether with the US or any other country, will be signed protecting the interests of the country and its people. “Decisions regarding defence deals will not just come from the MoFA. There are relevant agencies where discussions take place and decisions are made. I can’t tell you right now from here at what stage the talks are at,” State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while responding to a query. A section of media reported that Bangladesh and the US have agreed to reinforce defence cooperation, with both countries advancing negotiations on two long-discussed foundational agreements -- the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) and the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA). “I am reiterating that any agreement, whether with the US or any other country, will only be signed after the government and all relevant agencies, through consultations, determine that it serves the interests of the country and its people.

Beyond that, no deal is expected to be signed,” the state minister further explained. The GSOMIA is a foundational government-to-government (g2g) bilateral agreement that will permit greater collaboration and sharing of classified military information in the form of intelligence and classified information on US defence equipment, a diplomatic source told UNB. GSOMIA is a reciprocal, legally binding agreement that ensures governments understand and commit to protecting classified military information at an equivalent level of security. The state minister paid a brief visit to Washington, DC on May 18 and met senior US government officials at the US Department of State and senior leaderships of International Republican Institute (IRI) and the Atlantic Council.

Shama Obaed met US Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) S Paul Kapur at the US State Department. During the meeting, both the Bangladesh state minister and the US assistant secretary expressed satisfaction at the upward trajectory of Bangladesh-US relations. They reaffirmed commitment to further strengthening the partnership across various aspects of mutual interests including trade, energy, defence, Rohingya crisis, Indo-Pacific and people-to-people contact.