Each year we debate about the merit about establishing meaningful official diplomatic ties with the State of Israel but some of us fear if Bangladesh recognises Israel the fellow Muslim countries of the Middle East may view it negatively and ultimately the Bangladeshis working there will suffer greatly. The remittance earned from the respective workers are an important part of the country’s economy.
However with the United Arab Emirates officially taking steps to recognise Israel and establish diplomatic ties it is very much time for countries such as Bangladesh to establish communication channels with Israel for eventually hashing out a positive deal.
We are mindful of our commitments to the Palestinian people and we strongly believe in a two state solution where the Israelis and Palestinians can leave in peace side by side. At least the future generation of both Arab and Jewish children deserve what their parents could not experience in their lifetimes.
Bangladesh being the fastest growing major economy in the South Asia region as well as one of the largest Muslim majority nations of the world garnered a lot of attention from major powers of late.
There is no reason why Bangladesh cannot attract credible foreign direct investment from Israeli companies particularly in ICT, telecommunications, security, defence, shipbuilding and agriculture in order to ensure expansion of its own export basket.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the second largest Arabian economy in the Middle East. It is the third country to establish formal ties with Israel after Egypt did so in 1979 followed by Jordan in 1994. The latter two nations have gained significant support and aid packages from the United States through their favourable decision in relation to Israel.
We believe Bangladesh will be in a better position to voice its concerns about the Palestinian issue once it establishes diplomatic ties with Israel. Israel would be duty bound to hear out its new friends because it will be also keen to develop the relations with a large Muslim-majority nation to illustrate it wants peaceful relations with Muslim and Arab nations.
The United States government has stated already that it is in talks with other countries in the region on establishing ties with Israel.
At this crossroads in time it is important for the Bangladeshi business to find new markets and gain favourable trade access through enhanced ties with Western countries as the country moves to graduate in to a developing country in 2024.
The United States has requested the Bangladesh armed forces to purchase military equipment from their manufacturers. Companies such as Boeing have officially indicated they are close to selling the latest AH-64E Guardian Apache attack helicopters to the Bangladesh Air Force.
The Americans also want Bangladesh to sign two defence agreements before transferring advance military equipment to Bangladesh in view of maintaining their secrecy.
Besides both India and Myanmar have strong ties with Israel, whereas as Bangladesh expressly refused to recognise Israel even though Israeli’s supported the independence of Bangladesh.
The United Nations (UN) has recognised the importance of establishing a lasting peace in the Middle East. It is time as a responsible country in the comity of nations that Bangladesh play its due part in establishing ties with the State of Israel if it is deemed justifiable from an economic, political and military point of view. The Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh must adjust and respond according to changing times. It is their responsibility to uphold the interests of Bangladesh and make those tough decisions for the betterment of the country even if some decisions might seem unpopular in the short run.
