Bangladesh's elections are country's internal affair: Japanese ambassador

Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Iwama Kiminori has refrained from making any comments on the country's upcoming national election, saying it is an internal affair of Bangladesh.

Kiminori made this remark when he was asked if Japan changed its position on the Bangladesh's elections after the relations were elevated to strategic one through Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's recent visit to Japan.

He was addressing a press briefing at the Japanese Embassy today organised to brief on the recent meeting between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in Tokyo last week.

In November last year, Kiminori's predecessor Ito Naoki said he heard about ballot box stuffing by police overnight before the polling began in the 2018 national elections, and hoped that the next polls would be free and fair.

Today, Kiminori expressed satisfaction over the discussion between the prime ministers of Bangladesh and Japan during PM Sheikh Hasina's recent official visit, UNB reports.

The Japanese ambassador said the two countries are focusing on a "very comprehensive and targeted-oriented" partnership.

"Our relationship has been elevated to strategic partnership from comprehensive partnership. Strategic partnership does not mean only political and security issues," he said.

The ambassador, who returned from Tokyo yesterday, said the two countries should have mutually beneficial cooperation on the economic front.

He also said the countries agreed to further enhance the existing defence cooperation.

Responding to a question on Bangladesh's Indo-Pacific Outlook, the ambassador said there are many similarities between that and Japan's views on the Indo-Pacific region.

He said the Japanese side appreciated the idea but it is a "little premature" to evaluate the outlook at the moment.

During the summit meeting in Tokyo, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio welcomed the initiation of negotiations concerning the transfer of defence equipment and technology, recognising future potential.

They decided to "elevate" the bilateral relationship to a "Strategic Partnership" as a guiding principle to lead the two countries' journey into the next 50 years and beyond.

Both leaders shared the determination to enhance cooperation specifically in three major areas: cooperation for peace and stability in the region and beyond, deepening economic cooperation for mutual benefit and regional prosperity, and expansion of cultural cooperation and people to people exchanges.

At the invitation of the Japanese prime minister, Hasina made an official visit to Japan and had a summit meeting on April 26.