Dhaka for concerted efforts against terrorism

9 June 2010, 18:00 PM

Diplomatic Correspondent

Turkish President Abdullah Gul receives Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni at the Giragan Palace in Istanbul on Tuesday. Photo: Foreign Ministry

Foreign Minister Dipu Moni has reiterated that Bangladesh denounces terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and urged Asian and European states for making concerted efforts against terrorism. Addressing the 3rd Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Istanbul of Turkey, she also stressed on the necessity of addressing root causes of terrorism, according to a message received here yesterday. The foreign minister, who addressed the summit on Tuesday, mentioned that Bangladesh firmly believes in harmonious coexistence of the nations and peaceful resolution of all disputes. She added that Bangladesh strongly cherishes the concept of "friendship to all malice to none” and the initiative of the CICA conference is well in line with this value, which "we hold so close to our heart." Dipu Moni strongly condemned the barbaric attack on the flotilla carrying humanitarian support for the people of Gaza. She strongly emphasised the need for peaceful and sustainable resolution of the Middle East crisis. The Bangladesh foreign minister urged the CICA member states to engage in addressing pressing issues like climate change, education, poverty eradication, social and gender justice and women empowerment in Asia. Mentioning Bangladesh's role in global peace and security, the foreign minister expressed her support to establish nuclear-weapons-free zone in various regions of the world. SIDELINES MEETING At the sidelines of the summit, Dipu Moni called on the vice-president of Vietnam, met the foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Turkey and the Special Envoy of Japan. During meeting with Nguyen Thi Doan, vice-president of Vietnam, the Bangladesh foreign minister mentioned that frequent political interactions and people to people contact are imperative for strengthening bilateral relations between two friendly countries. In a meeting, Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, foreign minister of the UAE, invited his Bangladeshi counterpart to visit the UAE soon. Nahyan also informed that the UAE is seriously considering investing in the Bangladesh's energy sector. On her meeting with Yutaka Iimura, special envoy of the Japanese prime minister, Dipu Moni thanked Japan for their continued support to the development activities in Bangladesh. Dipu Moni had a bilateral meeting with her Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday. Thanking Turkey for hosting the CICA summit, she said Turkey's role in catalyzing international peace and stability as well as dialogue among the nations for confidence building is highly laudable. Mentioning Turkish President Abdullah Gul's recent visit to Bangladesh, the foreign minister termed it a breakthrough in context of political and trade relations. She hoped that the trade volume between Bangladesh and Turkey will go beyond $800 million by December 2010. Both the ministers agreed to continue to work for strengthening bilateral ties between the two countries. The CICA is a multinational forum for enhancing co-operation and promoting peace, security and stability in Asia. It has 20 members -- Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Palestine, South Korea, Russia, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, the UAE and Uzbekistan. The UN, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the League of Arab States, Qatar, Malaysia, Japan, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh are observers of the forum.