PM Calls on Russia to End Ukraine War

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged Russia to find a way to end the Russia-Ukraine war peacefully through negotiations.

She made the call when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov paid a courtesy call on her at the latter’s official residence, Ganabhaban, on Friday morning, PM’s Deputy Press Secretary Hasan Jahid Tusher told reporters after the meeting,

Afterwards, Russia's top diplomat visited the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum on Dhanmondi Road 32 to his respects to the architect of independent Bangladesh. He will leave for New Delhi later in the day to attend this year's G20 summit with a delegation.

Lavrov arrived in Dhaka on Thursday, marking the first Bangladesh visit by a Russian foreign minister.

His visit comes at a time when Western countries are keeping Russia under pressure over its invasion of Ukraine.

Lavrov on Thursday said Moscow appreciated "the fact that despite pressure exerted on Bangladesh by the US and its allies, our Bangladesh friends are guided exclusively by their national interest in foreign policy."

He called the US and its allies’ Indo-Pacific strategy not only a drive to deter China and isolate Russia in the region but also an "expansionist drive" on the part of the  North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato).

The minister said Russia and Bangladesh were moving fast to use national currencies for trade payments.

"We have agreed to increase our trade and investment," he said in his meeting with Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen.

"The Rooppur plant is the signature project in our relationship. Today we have noted that the project is being carried out in a consistent manner according to schedule."

He said the Russian company Gazprom had drilled 20 gas fields in Bangladesh and was ready to continue to do so. He added that Moscow had proposed supplying LNG, wheat and fertilizer to Bangladesh.

To discuss all those issues, he stressed establishing a permanent mechanism for regular contact, instead of annual discussions.

On the Rohingya issue, he said, Russia supported continued negotiations between Bangladesh and Myanmar to resolve the crisis.

"We believe that outside actors should limit themselves to simply raising the favourable conditions for finding mutually acceptable solutions. This is exactly what Russia is doing, and we will continue to do so."_UNB