Mushfiqul Fazal AnsareyRegarding recent press reports that Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had alleged that a “white man” had offered her the ability to stay in power without any pressure if she allowed a foreign country to establish an airbase in the Bay of Bengal, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said, “if it is in fact the United States, I’ll just say that they’re not accurate.”
Miller responded to a question from State Department correspondent Mushfiqul Fazal Ansarey during a June 4 briefing. Ansarey had called attention to PM Sheikh Hasina’s reported remarks during a ruling 14-party alliance meeting in Dhaka on May 23. PM Hasina allegedly said, “The plot is still there. With a part of Bangladesh like East Timor [broken off from Indonesia], then Chittagong [Chittagong Hill Tracts], Myanmar will form a Christian state. A base will be built in the Bay of Bengal.”
She reportedly said there had been a conspiracy not to allow the election in Bangladesh earlier this year. “But the holding of the election would be allowed and I would face no difficulty in retaining power if I allowed them to build a base in the Bay of Bengal. It was a proposal from a white person,” said the Prime Minister.
“Is Sheikh Hasina shooting too many arrows towards the US as you are asking for free, fair, and credible elections and rule of law and anti-corruption?” Ansarey asked at the briefing.
In reply, Miller said, “I’m not exactly sure who those comments refer to, but if it is in fact the United States, I’ll just say that they’re not accurate.”
