EU Team Holds Crucial Meeting with Foreign Ministry Officials to Strengthen International Relations and Foster Global Cooperation

The EU Election Exploratory Mission, comprising six members, is currently in Bangladesh for a two-week visit aimed at evaluating the environment surrounding the upcoming national elections. On the third day of their visit, the mission is engaging in a meeting with officials from the foreign ministry. The meeting, which began at approximately 10:00 am, involves the participation of Additional Secretary Asad Alam Siam and other senior officials from the ministry, according to officials' statements.

Furthermore, the EU delegation has plans to conduct meetings with the Human Rights Commission later today. Since their arrival in Dhaka on Saturday, the mission has already held discussions with EU ambassadors as well as Western diplomats, including representatives from the United States and the United Kingdom.

A diplomatic source revealed that the EU mission intended to gather insights from EU envoys in Dhaka, as well as envoys from Canada, Norway, and Switzerland, regarding their perspectives on Bangladesh's current domestic political landscape. The mission is also scheduled to meet with various stakeholders, including the government, political parties, Election Commission, security officials, civil society, and media representatives.

EU Ambassador to Bangladesh, Charles Whiteley, previously stated that the mission would need to assess the feasibility, usefulness, and advisability of deploying a complete EU observation mission. The assessment report, to be submitted to the EU High Representative Josep Borrell, will play a pivotal role in the EU's decision regarding the dispatch of a comprehensive Election Observation Mission (EOM) before the upcoming general election. The general election is currently scheduled for December this year or possibly early next year.

In the meantime, election analysts have emphasized that the EU mission's assessment holds significant importance in influencing the decisions of other international observers regarding their participation in observing the forthcoming polls in Bangladesh.