Kerry's short trip to Dhaka

US Secretary of state John Kerry's short visit, only the second by a US Secretary of State to Bangladesh in four years, we believe, has taken our bilateral relationship one step further. It is good to see the US being more appreciative of our development efforts and our role in the international arena, especially in the battling of extremism and terrorism, despite many hindrances. We are reassured by the Secretary's comments that the US will assist Bangladesh on all important sectors related to our development. However, that notwithstanding we are surprised that the issue of GSP and duty free access was not even broached during the Secretary's talks with Bangladeshi leaders. This comes as a deep disappointment to us.

We are glad that the US considers Bangladesh an important development partner and that our two countries will engage more deeply in the fight against terror that threatens to engulf countries in the region. And like Secretary Kerry, we believe that terrorism can be combated more effectively through better governance and democracy.

However, one of the preconditions for Bangladesh to continue its march towards development is through enhancing our trade, particularly our exports. And the US being a major destination of our principal export item readymade garments, continued suspension of GSP facility hinders our efforts to enhance our volume of trade, particularly export. To make our development more robust, it is not 'aid' but 'trade' that we would like to depend on for our economic development. We would hope that in the wake of this official visit, where we have been assured of all assistance in all spheres including our counter-terrorism efforts, this particular issue of GSP will no longer remain a stumbling block in our even closer engagement as development partners.