DHAKA: Bangladesh and Myanmar formed a 30-member joint working group (JWG) for the repatriation of Rohingya refugees after a bilateral meeting in Dhaka on Tuesday.
The JWG will be led by the foreign secretaries of the two countries. Diplomats and analysts in Dhaka have expressed deep concern about the plight of Rohingya refugees after recent operations in Myanmar.
The bilateral meeting at a state guesthouse in Dhaka was led by Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Shahidul Huq and Myanmar Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Ministry Myint Thu. The two officials will also lead the JWG for their respective countries.
Talking to the media after the meeting, Huq said the JWG will make arrangements for the repatriation of refugees through verification, time scheduling, transport and logistics and reception procedure. The JWG will also update the respective governments quarterly about progress on the issue.
The two countries had earlier agreed to constitute the JWG and signed a bilateral agreement on Nov. 23 in Myanmar during a visit by Bangladeshi Foreign Minister A.H. Mahmud Ali.
“The modalities of the JWG are not yet clear,” said Humayun Kabir, former Bangladesh ambassador to the US. “Considering the current situation in Rakhine State, I do not find enough reason to be optimistic regarding the repatriation process.
Speaking to Arab News, he said: “Today in a joint press meet, the Turkish prime minister also stressed the importance of constant international pressure on Myanmar to solve the crisis but it seems that Bangladesh is exploring bilateral solutions. The international community is deeply concerned over the Rohingya refugee issue and all that we need to do now is to channel this effort of the international community.”
Professor Akmol Hossain, an expert on regional politics at Dhaka University, told Arab News, “The formation of JWG is already late. According to the agreement signed on Nov. 23, it was supposed to be constituted within three weeks of the date of signing of the agreement and the repatriation process was supposed to commence in two months from Nov. 23. Now it is not clear when the actual repatriation would start. Myanmar’s response currently makes the success of the JWG doubtful.
“Myanmar has also not agreed to take back the Rohingyas who took shelter in Bangladesh before 2016 while Dhaka wanted to repatriate all the refugees.”
Hossain urged Bangladesh to approach China to seek a “sustainable solution of the crisis” as China had always advocated “a bilateral solution.”
According to the UN, about 655,000 Rohingya refugees have taken shelter in Bangladesh since the violence escalated in Rakhine State on Aug. 25.
Bangladesh, Myanmar form joint working group for repatriation of Rohingya refugees
Bangladesh, Myanmar form joint working group for repatriation of Rohingya refugees
Zelensky says Ukrainian air force needs to improve as Russian drone barrages take a toll
- Zelensky said Friday he had discussed with his defense minister and the air force commander what new air defense measures Ukraine needs to counter the Russian barrages
- Russia fired 328 drones and seven missiles at Ukraine overnight and in the early morning
KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday described the performance of the air force in parts of the country as “unsatisfactory,” and said that steps are being taken to improve the response to large-scale Russian drone barrages of civilian areas.
The repeated Russian aerial assaults have in recent months focused on Ukraine’s power grid, causing blackouts and disrupting the heating and water supply for families during a bitterly cold winter.
With the war about to enter its fifth year later this month following Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbor, there is no sign of a breakthrough in US-led peace efforts following the latest talks this week.
Further US-brokered meetings between Russian and Ukrainian delegations are planned “in the near future, likely in the United States,” Zelensky said.
Zelensky said Friday he had discussed with his defense minister and the air force commander what new air defense measures Ukraine needs to counter the Russian barrages. He didn’t elaborate on what would be done.
Russia fired 328 drones and seven missiles at Ukraine overnight and in the early morning, the air force said, claiming that air defenses shot down 297 drones.
One person was killed and two others were injured in an overnight Russian attack using drones and powerful glide bombs on the central Dnipropetrovsk region, according to the head of the regional military administration, Oleksandr Hanzha.
A Russian aerial attack on the southern Zaporizhzhia region during early daylight hours injured eight people and damaged 18 apartment blocks, according to regional military administration head Ivan Fedorov.
A dog shelter in the regional capital was also struck, killing 13 dogs, Zaporizhzhia City Council Secretary Rehina Kharchenko said.
Some dogs were rushed to a veterinary clinic, but they could not be saved, she said. Seven other animals were injured and are receiving treatment.
Amid icy conditions in Kyiv, more than 1,200 residential buildings in multiple districts of the capital have had no heating for days due to the Russian bombardment of the power grid, according to Zelensky.
The UK defense ministry said Friday that Ukraine’s electricity network “is experiencing its most acute crisis of the winter.”
Mykola Tromza, an 81-year-old pensioner in Kyiv, said he has had his power restored, but recently went without heating and water at home for a week.
“I touched my nose and by God, it was like an icicle,” Tromza said. He said he ran up and down to keep warm.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that air defenses downed 38 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 26 over the Bryansk region.
Bryansk Gov. Alexander Bogomaz said the attack briefly cut power to several villages in the region.
Another Ukrainian nighttime strike damaged power facilities in the Russian city of Belgorod, disrupting electricity distribution, Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
Local reports said that Ukrainian missiles hit a power plant and an electrical substation, cutting power to parts of the city.
Fierce fighting has also continued on the front line despite the frigid temperatures.
Ukraine’s Commander in Chief, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, said the front line now measures about 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) in length along eastern and southern parts of Ukraine.
The increasing technological improvements to drones on both sides mean that the so-called “kill zone” where troops are in greatest danger is now up to 20 kilometers (12 miles) deep, he told reporters on Thursday in comments embargoed until Friday.
