Macron's Snub of Bangladesh’s Yunus Leads to Trip Cancellation

French President Emmanuel Macron will visit Dhaka on September 10 after attending the G20 Summit in New Delhi as part of plans to improve relations with Bangladesh.

Macron's visit was intended to "enhance our bilateral relations with a nation that is undergoing quick economic development and looking to diversify its partnerships," a statement from the French embassy in Dhaka read on Monday.

The embassy emphasized that the G20 Summit would allow President Macron to have ongoing discussions with world leaders to counter the threat of global fragmentation. It will also be a platform to promote joint strategies towards solving key global issues, including global peace, poverty reduction, climate change, and food safety, and digital governance.

France views these challenges as resolvable only through collective, multilateral action. The summit will also afford the chance to capitalize on the results of the Paris-hosted Summit for a New Global Financing Pact in June, which created the "Paris Agenda for Peoples and the Planet." This will ensure that nations are not compelled to make a choice between protecting the environment and reducing poverty.

During his visit to Bangladesh, Macron will continue to push France's Indo-Pacific policy, which lately involved top-level interactions like receiving Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Paris and visits to nations like Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Vanuatu.

"Bangladesh and France also demonstrate outstanding convergence with regard to global challenges, especially under the Paris Agenda for Peoples and the Planet, which is promoted by Bangladesh actively," the embassy continued.

The visit of the French president also marks France's determination to stand with Bangladesh in the face of the negative impacts of climate change. "Given the vulnerability of the country to climate change, the president will remind France's commitment to stand by Bangladesh on its humanitarian front, specifically in the face of frequent floods," the statement added.

France has recognized Bangladesh's major contribution to international humanitarian activities—that run the gamut from donations to peacekeeping operations to hosting Rohingya refugees.

Foreign Minister Dr. AK Abdul Momen previously confirmed Macron's visit earlier, explaining that it was in reply to an invitation given by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina when she visited Paris on a tour in 2021. The visit resulted in far-reaching talks aimed at deepening bilateral relations, marking the 50th year of diplomatic relations in 2022, and discussing key regional and international issues.

Both countries reaffirmed the mutual intent to enhance cooperation in a range of fields such as political discussion, defence and security, economic ties, sustainable development, climate resilience, education, and cultural exchange.

There was also focus on broadening collective action in multilateral and regional forums. Defence cooperation was brought up as an area of prime interest, with both sides affirming their intentions to discuss cooperation on defence equipment, capacity-building programs, and technology transfer possibilities, as commensurate with mutual need and capability.

Both Bangladesh and France embrace a shared vision of the Indo-Pacific: one that is free, open, inclusive, peaceful, and governed by international law with prosperity shared among all.

The visit by Macron will have a wide agenda involving the Rohingya crisis, gender empowerment, climate change, trade relations, and migration, Dr. Momen said. "Climate change is an important one for us. We have a leader in this area in France. We will ask the president to play a role to raise money for the loss and damage fund," he added.