Hyderabad: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's chemistry with India has never gone wrong. This time around, when she has waded into the choppy waters just before high-stake polls due next year largely due to the US bloc's scathing attack on her over Bangladesh's 'democratic backsliding', rumbling in Awami League's ranks and opposition BNP's renewed anti-Hasina tirade, the G-20 summit came as a saviour for her. Hasina's presence at the G-20 summit came good for her at the crucial juncture.
The last week has been action-packed for Bangladesh. The South Asian nation also hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and French President Emmanuel Macron. While Lavrov landed in Dhaka for a day ahead of the summit and held talks with senior leaders including Hasina, Macron paid a two-day visit to the South Asian nation right after the summit. Lavrov's visit to Dhaka marks the first ever by Russia.
Macron in Dhaka said, "Bangladesh is progressively retrieving its place on the world stage."Last month, Hasina also attended the BRICS summit in Johannesburg.
The G20 engagements with world leaders helped the Bangladesh Prime Minister get goodwill. One of the highlights for Bangladesh during the G20 summit has been the US President Joe Biden clicking a selfie with Hasina and her daughter Saima Wazed at a time when the US has been increasing its pressure on Dhaka with general elections approaching. In May, the US Department of State announced visa restrictions against Bangladeshis who undermined the democratic election process at home.
"There is enough signal of the thawing relations between the two countries after some turbulence over the last few months," Kamruzzaman Samad, a strategic expert, said.
Besides Biden's selfie, images of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak kneeling down while talking to Hasina have also attracted attention. Thousands of Bangladesh citizens have showered heaps of praise for Hasina. Social media handles were abuzz with such comments.
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Big man don't have ego! Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of UK sat down on the floor to match the comfort - in a tetatete with with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. #G20 pic.twitter.com/6oAbzuskbd
— Ayanangsha Maitra (@Ayanangsha) September 10, 2023 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
">Big man don't have ego! Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of UK sat down on the floor to match the comfort - in a tetatete with with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. #G20 pic.twitter.com/6oAbzuskbd
— Ayanangsha Maitra (@Ayanangsha) September 10, 2023Big man don't have ego! Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of UK sat down on the floor to match the comfort - in a tetatete with with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. #G20 pic.twitter.com/6oAbzuskbd
— Ayanangsha Maitra (@Ayanangsha) September 10, 2023
Analysts said that the world’s increased engagements with Bangladesh in the last few months will further boost Hasina’s image as an astute statesman and a forward-looking leader. Bangladesh, under Hasina, has managed to accelerate its growth rate. In 2022-23, it registered a growth rate of 6.03 per cent, as per a provisional estimate. The country is now gearing to exit the list of least developed countries (LDC) in 2026.
Unsurprisingly, the selfie episode has not gone down well with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the primary opposition party in the country. "Hang the selfie around your neck. That will help you a lot. You are trying to tell the people that Biden is with you now," The G20 euphoria had gripped Bangladesh too. The country - the only one from South Asia to be invited - made its G20 debut this year."We believe that our honourable Prime Minister's participation at the G20 Summit in New Delhi will add yet another feather to the 'Sonali Adhyay' or 'Golden Chapter' of our bilateral relations," Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said before the summit.
The Sheikh Hasina government is perhaps India’s closest and only reliable partner in a neighbourhood fraught with anti-Indian feelings and shifting loyalties. Although India has traditionally been the acknowledged 'big power' in South Asia, in recent years that position has been seriously challenged by China, whose interest and footprint in the region are increasing with each passing day.
