FE Report

Foreign minister Dr Dipu Moni said Wednesday the comments by Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh at a June 21 seminar were devoid of diplomatic etiquette.

Indian envoy Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty at the meeting on the day made some remarks about Tipaimukh dam and said there was no international law that could stop India from implementing the dam, which is perceived by local experts to wreak huge environmental disaster on Bangladesh.

"It is my personal opinion, I think he (the high commissioner) has crossed the limit," she said at a press briefing on her trip to the United Nations where leaders across the world discussed the current global recession on June 24-26.

The international laws are not 'impotent' and the issue could be solved through bilateral discussions, she said.

"The Indian authority sent us documents of the dam and the foreign ministry again sent those to water resources ministry, joint river commission and parliamentary standing committee on water resources," she added.

The experts will analyse the documents and submit their reports to the government to take its decision, Dr Moni said.

The foreign minister during her visit to New York asked the global leaders to develop new global economic order and urged the UN to take lead roles in this regard.

"I also sought for more role of the least developed countries in the decision making process at the international financial institutions to protect the interest of LDCs," she said.

The world body should be reformed and reconstituted to play an effective role in maintaining balance in the global financial systems, she added.

"The global recession is created by the developed world, but the LDCs and developing countries are also affected by the crisis," she said.

Poverty and unemployment increase in many countries, and trade and remittances fall in many least developed countries, she added.

The foreign minister urged the UN to help the LDCs get their 'fair shares' from the $1.1 trillion compensation packages announced by the developed world.

"The UN officials assured me that the development assistance will not be hampered due to the recession and the world body will also help us in river dredging and mitigating arsenic problems," the foreign minister said.

The developed world has promised that they would give assistance to the LDCs to the tune of 0.7 per cent of their GDP, she said adding, "I have urged them to keep the commitment."