Bangladesh, which pursues ‘friendship to all, malice towards none’ foreign policy is facing a new dilemma if the tension between Saudi Arabia and Qatar spirals.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed their ties with Qatar on Monday, accusing it of supporting terrorism.
They also accused Qatar of backing militant groups — some backed by regional arch-rival Iran — and broadcasting their ideology, an apparent reference to Qatar’s influential state-owned satellite channel Al Jazeera.
Such a Saudi move was seen in 2014 which was later mediated by the US.
But this time, the decision came in the wake of President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia for the Arab Islamic American summit where leaders spoke tough against Iran.
Bangladesh has joined the Saudi-led alliance against terrorism and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was present at the summit from where a joint statement was also issued. The statement mentioned Iran’s “malign interference” in the Middle-east’s ongoing crisis.
Bangladesh also supported Saudi-led strikes in Yemen where rebel Houthi fighters, representing a Shia minority, was backed by Iran.
A former Bangladesh ambassador, Humayun Kabir, also Vice President of Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI), does not see any impact right now.
“But the row can affect Bangladesh,” he told bdnews24.com, explaining that if the tension escalates, then “that will not good for us”.
Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia are the major destinations of Bangladeshi workers.
In 2015, more Bangladeshis went to Qatar than they did to Saudi Arabia mainly due to ongoing infrastructure projects ahead of the 2022 World Cup that will be hosted by Doha.
Former ambassador Kabir said it is not clear yet how the situation will pan out.
“But if it escalates, then there will be pressure on Bangladesh to take sides which will not be convenient for it.
“Saudi Arabia can ask for support from the countries that joined its military alliance. And that request can also come Bangladesh’s way. If that happens, then it’ll be difficult for us. We have so many people both in Qatar and Saudi Arabia,” he said.
He suggested Bangladesh policymakers to do “in-depth analysis and research” on the whole issue before making any decision.
Source: bdnews24