Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina disclosed on Sunday that she was offered a hassle-free re-election in the January 7 polls if she allowed a foreign country to establish an airbase in Bangladesh.
“The offer came from a White man,” Hasina stated, without naming the country. She emphasized her refusal, citing her commitment to national sovereignty. “I don’t want to come to power by renting part of the country or handing it over to some other country,” she said, reiterating her stance from 2001 when she rejected a US offer to sell gas to India.
Daughter of Bangladesh’s founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina, underscored the strategic importance of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean, areas free from conflict but eyed by many. She hinted at ongoing conspiracies to create a new country in the region, reminiscent of East Timor, involving parts of Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Despite potential threats and pressures, Hasina remains defiant. She vowed that Bangladesh would not purchase anything from countries imposing sanctions on it, demonstrating her resolve to maintain national integrity and independence.
Hasina, who has ruled the strategically significant South Asian nation since 2009, secured a fifth term in an election boycotted by the main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
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