Staff Correspondent
Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Iwama Kiminori today said Bangladesh’s upcoming election is “an internal affair” and he doesn’t want to make any comment on it. “I would refrain from making any comments on this (Bangladesh election). It is an internal affair of Bangladesh,” he said. The envoy made the remark when a journalist wanted to know Japan’s position on Bangladesh’s upcoming polls after bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and Japan was elevated to “strategic partnership” during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s recent official visit to Tokyo.The ambassador was briefing media at the Japanese Embassy on the recent meeting between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in Tokyo.At the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, Sheikh Hasina made an official visit to Japan and had a summit meeting on April 26.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.

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