Skip to main content

'Bangladesh Comes First': Tarique Rahman On His Foreign Policy

After a sweeping victory in the 13th National Parliamentary Elections, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chief Tarique Rahman, in a press conference, said that Bangladesh's foreign policy will prioritise the country's interests over others. "People come first," he said.

"Freedom loving pro-democracy people of the country have once again brought victory to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party," he said in English, before switching to Bangla.

"We have cleared ourselves regarding the foreign policy which is in the interest of Bangladesh, and the interest of the Bangladeshi people comes first. By protecting the interest of Bangladesh and the Bangladeshi people, we will decide our foreign policy," Rahman said.

Answering how the government would approach international relations, senior BNP leader Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said that the party would stick to multilateralism and not go after a country-centric approach.

That being said, Rahman's "Bangladesh First" policy aims to balance ties with neighbouring countries like India, China and Pakistan.

Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairman Tarique Rahman leaves after addressing a press conference in Dhaka on February 14, 2026

Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairman Tarique Rahman leaves after addressing a press conference in Dhaka on February 14, 2026
Photo Credit: AFP

The BNP leadership also highlighted how important safeguarding sovereignty, ensuring strategic autonomy and mutual respect would be to shape foreign relations.

How India Views The New Leadership

Humayun Kabir, who handles international relations for Rahman and is set to be a key official in the new regime, said the priority is to build a "stronger cooperation among our people".

He said India will be one of the countries that "we will visit", though he did not give a definite time.

"Obviously there are certain domestic priorities and then international engagements. Of course India will be one of the countries that we will visit, among other countries in the region," Kabir told NDTV.

India views the return of an elected leadership as an "opportune moment" to repair setbacks inflicted on the relationship. The focus now shifts to BNP's acting chairman, Tarique Rahman, whom Indian officials describe as someone they are "cautiously optimistic" about.

That optimism was reflected in the swift outreach from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who posted on X that he was "delighted to speak" with Rahman and congratulated him on the "remarkable victory" in the elections. PM Modi reaffirmed India's commitment to peace, progress, and prosperity for both nations, emphasising the deep historical and cultural ties that bind the neighbours.

The BNP won 212 seats, compared with 77 for the Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance, per the Electoral Commission.



from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/rpMwAjl
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PM Modi To Reschedule 3-Nation Europe Visit As Tensions With Pakistan Soar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put his three-nation Europe visit on hold as tensions between India and Pakistan have surged in the wake of the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in which 26 civilians were killed by Pak-linked terrorists in a religiously-motivated terror attack. India responded on Wednesday with precision missile strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. PM Modi, who is closely-monitoring the situation, has reportedly asked for his visit to Croatia, Norway, and the Netherlands, which was due next week, to be rescheduled. As per his original schedule Prime Minister Modi was to commence his official visit to the three nations on May 13. He was also going to participate in the India-Nordic Summit in Oslo on May 15 and 16. All three countries have been informed about the change in PM Modi's schedule. They have also been appraised about the current situation between India and Pakistan. Last month too, on the day of the Pahalga...
Post a Comment
Read more

Delhi to Get More EV Charging, Battery Swapping Stations as Cab Aggregators Increase E-Bikes

The NDMC is planning to increase the number of EV charging stations in Lutyens' Delhi and even provide battery swapping facilities at some of these points, a senior official said on Wednesday. With Delhi being among the most polluted capitals in the world, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has been making a push for electric vehicles to nudge residents to opt for cleaner vehicle options. There are around 100 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the national capital at present and this would be the first time that some of them would have battery swapping facilities, which is quite prominent in Western countries, he said. The official said the aim is to provide easy accessibility to charging stations and to save time by providing swapping facilities. This will give a major push to EVs in the city. Various PSUs, including the Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited (REIL) and the Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KELTRON), have approac...
Post a Comment
Read more

After Nitish Kumar's 'Praise', BJP Says Doors Closed For Him

The opposition BJP in Bihar on Thursday said that its doors were "closed" for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who dumped the saffron party a year ago, stripping it of power in the state. State BJP President Samrat Choudhary made the averment to this effect in reply to queries from journalists about the Janata Dal United leader's address to the convocation ceremony of Mahatma Gandhi Central University at Motihari. Speaking in the presence of President Droupadi Murmu and Governor Rajendra Arlekar, Mr Kumar had freely spoken of the tussle he had with the then Congress government at the Centre for getting a university approved for Motihari, where Mahatma Gandhi had launched the Champaran Satyagraha. Without mentioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi by name, Mr Kumar acknowledged that the project saw the light of the day only after a change of guard "in 2014" as the UPA government "initially refused and after much persuasion agreed in principle but did not move for...
Post a Comment
Read more