Anti-Russia sanctions by the West hit Global South, including Bangladesh: Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen

We are telling India to become our leader in the Global South so that we can amplify our voice and make the West listen to our concern, he says

Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen. File | Photo Credit: AP

Countries that have been unleashing sanctions against each other after the beginning of the Ukraine war never consulted Dhaka, even though Bangladesh is among those nations “hit hardest” by the economic fallout of the crisis, Bangladesh Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen said.

Mr. Momen spoke to The Hindu hours after arriving in New Delhi to participate in the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting that began on Wednesday evening with a conversation and dinner among the delegations of the participating countries.

He reiterated that there was an urgent requirement to maintain open channels of dialogue at both regional and global levels so that less developed countries are not left alone to deal with the unpredictable scenarios of the contemporary world order.

“We are among the hardest hit countries because of the sanctions and counter-sanctions but they never asked us of our opinion on this matter. They [major western economies] never even consulted us at any stage. We are therefore going to raise the problems confronting the countries of the Global South at the G20,” said Mr Momen, who also spoke about the state of bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh at the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF). Bangladesh is among the nine “guest countries”.

Mr. Momen said economic issues like commodities crisis and energy insecurity had increased in countries across the Global South and added that the Sheikh Hasina government was in consultation with New Delhi about evolving a joint strategy to deal with the problem.

“We are telling India to become our leader in the Global South so that we can amplify our voice and make the West listen to our concern,” he said.

Mr. Momen said the war in Ukraine had become a major venture for many businesses that are making huge profit and are part of the problem generated by the conflict.  

“We want those who are making runway profit from the war to share a part of their profit with the Global South,” he said.

Delivering a speech at the VIF on “Promoting Culture of Peace or Shared Prosperity: A Vision for South Asia”, he obliquely hinted at the stalled Teesta waters agreement and reminded that political necessities should not stop bilateral cooperation on areas that are in the interest of a neighbour.