CANBERRA, June 14 (UNB): Foreign Affairs Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury met with Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives David Hawker MP at the Australian Parliament here Thursday morning.
"It was an excellent interaction and Hawker was very eager to learn about Bangladesh in general and our current activities in particular," the adviser told the media after the meeting, according to a message in Dhaka.
"Both of us saw the need for closer Bangladesh-Australia cooperation for we share similar pluralistic values," he said.
During the meeting, the Australian Speaker said the reforms being undertaken by the caretaker government would benefit Bangladesh.
Among others, Bangladesh High Commissioner to Australia Humayun Kabir and Director General of Bangladesh Foreign Ministry Shahidul Islam were also present on the occasion.
Thereafter, Chairman of the Bangladesh Australia Parlia-mentary Group Andrew Laming MP hosted a working lunch for Iftekhar Chowdhury in the Parliament House Res-taurant.
Chris Hayes MP and Stuart Henry MP, both members of the Parliamentary Group, also joined the event.
The discussions centred round the measures that the caretaker government was adopting in order to hold free, fair and credible elections in Bangladesh, which the Australian Administration appreciated.
They also underscored the need for the two Commonwealth countries to work closely in the international arena.
Earlier, on Wednesday evening, the adviser gave a lecture on "Evolving Challenges for Bangladesh in South Asia" at the Australian National University, which was largely attended by university professors, diplomats, students and members of the Bangladeshi community in Australia.
Bangladesh-Australia cooperation stressed
FE Team | Published: June 15, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
Share if you like