Bangladesh under US pressure to recognize Kosovo
Bangladesh has announced on Tuesday it was under pressure by Washington to recognize Kosovo, adding it would consider “national interests” while taking a decision.
(KosovoCompromise Staff) Tuesday, July 01, 2008
US ambassador James F Moriarty Tuesday met foreign affairs adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury a second time at the foreign ministry and conveyed the US government's request to Bangladesh to recognise Kosovo.
"I was once again asked by my government to go and talk to the foreign adviser about Kosovo," Moriarty told reporters after his meeting with Iftekhar.
"The main objective of his (Moriarty) visit was to discuss the Kosovo issue. They want a formal recognition. We said we would examine the issue," Iftekhar told reporters.
The adviser said Bangladesh would take a decision considering the stance of other Muslim countries on Kosovo's independence. "Muslim states were not all of the same opinion," he said.
"We must have close relations with Kosovo, but we will think about our national interests in recognising Kosovo," said Iftekhar.
"On such matters (recognition of any country), we take into consideration how we will benefit from it. There are some political problems," said the adviser.
"As Russia has made it clear that it will resist Kosovo's UN membership. There are lots of disagreements on whether a state (Serbia) should be broken or what the relations should be with a country which will not be able to be a UN member," he said.
