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No row behind Putin not visiting Dhaka: Russia
Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2013-09-24 21:25:46.0 BdST Updated: 2013-09-24 21:35:35.0
Russia has dismissed a media report that claimed President Vladimir Putin is not coming to Bangladesh because of frayed relations with the government as “false and baseless information”.
Bengali daily Prothom Alo had reported that Putin would not come to Dhaka to lay the foundation stone of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant on Oct 2 with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina because Kremlin was not happy with the progress the Bangladesh government made on the plant and with defence purchase deals.
Its mission in Dhaka said the tour was not going ahead because of the Russian President’s tight domestic and international commitments.
“First of all I have to reject entirely this false information. There is no basis of such kind of information,” Russian embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission Anatoly Y Davydenko said replying to a question at media call on Tuesday.
“The development of our bilateral relations is going on very actively,” he said and urged all to understand how a leader no less than Putin works.
“….such a leader as Putin, leader of such a country Russia, you please understand how busy he is,” he said.
“You know situation around Syria…you know flood situation in eastern part of Russia, it has appeared as an additional problem …the President has to look at all those problems.
“It’s a very tough working schedule for (the President), it’s entirely impossible,” he said.
He said Putin had accepted Hasina’s invitation in January. “So it was on the agenda, but due to time it cannot be fulfilled”.
He said he would send the Director General of Russia’s State Atomic Energy Commission Rosatom which would assist the project for the foundation stone-laying ceremony. “He is a minister ranked official”.
Head of the Russian cultural centre in Dhaka Alexander P Demin said it took at least two years to prepare Hasina’s Moscow visit in January.
“So visit from the Russian side is also a very complicated issue,” he said.
Hasina visited Moscow in January, the first by a Bangladeshi head of government since Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s visit of the erstwhile Soviet Union in April 1972 immediately after Bangladesh became independent.
Then Soviet Union supported Bangladesh War of Independence against Pakistan.
During her visit, the two sides had signed several deals on the Rooppur power plant which would be installed at in the northern Pabna with a target to generate 1000MW power daily for the power-starved Bangladesh.
The Deputy Head of Mission said the Rosatom Director General would lead a strong delegation and they would inaugurate the nuclear power plant information centre in Dhaka on Oct 1, the day before the foundation stone of the coveted project is laid.
He said there would be a signing ceremony on the construction of the proposed N-power plant during the delegation’s visit.
The press meet was orgainsed to make it known that Russia had opened its door again to Bangladesh’s young generation.
Five young engineers who had made a short visit to Moscow last month in an exchange programme had shared their experiences in the meeting.
“The Russian government is planning to continue this programme. It’s only the beginning, more and more Bangladeshi youths will be able to participate in the programme and visit Russia,” Deputy Head of Mission Davydenko said.
Citing instances of ‘good’ relations between the two countries, he said during Hasina’s visit, Putin also emphasised how the two-way trade could be increased, among other things.
He said recently a big Russian business delegation visited Dhaka and they were ‘really satisfied’.
A Bangladeshi delegation would also attend a business fair in Russia, he said
*Despite what they say the Russians are unhappy with Bangladesh over the progress of some of these deals and signifying their displeasure by Putin not visiting.
The Russians can afford to do this now but not in 5 years time when there is a much much stronger Bangladesh which will be the bridge between India and China and their economic markets of 1 billion people each i.e. around 2.5 billion (more than 1/3 of humanity)
Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2013-09-24 21:25:46.0 BdST Updated: 2013-09-24 21:35:35.0
Russia has dismissed a media report that claimed President Vladimir Putin is not coming to Bangladesh because of frayed relations with the government as “false and baseless information”.
Bengali daily Prothom Alo had reported that Putin would not come to Dhaka to lay the foundation stone of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant on Oct 2 with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina because Kremlin was not happy with the progress the Bangladesh government made on the plant and with defence purchase deals.
Its mission in Dhaka said the tour was not going ahead because of the Russian President’s tight domestic and international commitments.
“First of all I have to reject entirely this false information. There is no basis of such kind of information,” Russian embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission Anatoly Y Davydenko said replying to a question at media call on Tuesday.
“The development of our bilateral relations is going on very actively,” he said and urged all to understand how a leader no less than Putin works.
“….such a leader as Putin, leader of such a country Russia, you please understand how busy he is,” he said.
“You know situation around Syria…you know flood situation in eastern part of Russia, it has appeared as an additional problem …the President has to look at all those problems.
“It’s a very tough working schedule for (the President), it’s entirely impossible,” he said.
He said Putin had accepted Hasina’s invitation in January. “So it was on the agenda, but due to time it cannot be fulfilled”.
He said he would send the Director General of Russia’s State Atomic Energy Commission Rosatom which would assist the project for the foundation stone-laying ceremony. “He is a minister ranked official”.
Head of the Russian cultural centre in Dhaka Alexander P Demin said it took at least two years to prepare Hasina’s Moscow visit in January.
“So visit from the Russian side is also a very complicated issue,” he said.
Hasina visited Moscow in January, the first by a Bangladeshi head of government since Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s visit of the erstwhile Soviet Union in April 1972 immediately after Bangladesh became independent.
Then Soviet Union supported Bangladesh War of Independence against Pakistan.
During her visit, the two sides had signed several deals on the Rooppur power plant which would be installed at in the northern Pabna with a target to generate 1000MW power daily for the power-starved Bangladesh.
The Deputy Head of Mission said the Rosatom Director General would lead a strong delegation and they would inaugurate the nuclear power plant information centre in Dhaka on Oct 1, the day before the foundation stone of the coveted project is laid.
He said there would be a signing ceremony on the construction of the proposed N-power plant during the delegation’s visit.
The press meet was orgainsed to make it known that Russia had opened its door again to Bangladesh’s young generation.
Five young engineers who had made a short visit to Moscow last month in an exchange programme had shared their experiences in the meeting.
“The Russian government is planning to continue this programme. It’s only the beginning, more and more Bangladeshi youths will be able to participate in the programme and visit Russia,” Deputy Head of Mission Davydenko said.
Citing instances of ‘good’ relations between the two countries, he said during Hasina’s visit, Putin also emphasised how the two-way trade could be increased, among other things.
He said recently a big Russian business delegation visited Dhaka and they were ‘really satisfied’.
A Bangladeshi delegation would also attend a business fair in Russia, he said
*Despite what they say the Russians are unhappy with Bangladesh over the progress of some of these deals and signifying their displeasure by Putin not visiting.
The Russians can afford to do this now but not in 5 years time when there is a much much stronger Bangladesh which will be the bridge between India and China and their economic markets of 1 billion people each i.e. around 2.5 billion (more than 1/3 of humanity)