India talks to Biden’s point man on Bangladesh amid shadow on future ties

US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu’s current visit to New Delhi has gathered significance in the wake of Sheikh Hasina’s ouster in Bangladesh and amid a view in India that the Americans were responsible for it.

This has led observers to wonder how the recent developments in Bangladesh will affect India-US cooperation in future, especially while dealing with China’s assertive rise in the region.

A former Indian ambassador who worked in the neighbourhood said: “India’s interests should be paramount even while cooperating with others.”

India and Hasina

Hasina’s loss is still being assessed by the Indian establishment as she was the closest and most reliable partner in a region fraught with anti-India sentiments.

She cooperated with India on a range of issues including connectivity projects that could have integrated the north-eastern region in India better with the rest of the country as well as Bangladesh.

Behind Lu's India visit

Lu is the point person of the Joe Biden administration on Bangladesh, and his September 10-16 visit will also take him to Dhaka after talks in New Delhi.

Sources said that the recent development in Bangladesh was among the issues discussed, but the Indian foreign ministry was reluctant to acknowledge it officially.

The US official’s presence in India gave the two sides an opportunity to exchange views on Bangladesh in the wake of Hasina’s exit after a student protest turned into a mass revolt in which several people were killed.

US blamed for Hasina’s exit

The dominant view in India since her dismissal on August 5 blames the US for the anti-Hasina protests.

Hasina too purportedly made the accusation but withdrew it soon after. This did not stop Indian commentators and experts from holding the Biden administration responsible for Hasina’s ouster and flight to India.

The ostensible reason for the US official delegation’s presence in New Delhi is for talks to focus on enhancing cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and beyond during their 2+2 intersessional Dialogue.

Row over Bangladesh islands?

US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, Jedidiah P Royal, and her counterparts from the Indian ministries of external affairs and defence will be at the talks.

Hasina accused the US of turning against her because she refused to grant the Americans two strategic islands in the Bay of Bengal within Bangladesh’s maritime jurisdiction.

The islands could have given the US better strategic hold to deal with China's rising threat in the Indo-Pacific region.

Hasina’s strained ties with US

Although Hasina denied making the charges against the US, the Indian social media was awash with comments of how America was behind her overthrow.

Her strained relations with the Americans were widely known in diplomatic circles.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre has denied any US involvement in Hasina’s exit.

US denies muddling in Bangladesh

“We have had no involvement at all. Any reports or rumours that the United States government was involved in these events is simply, simply false. That is not true," she said.

But this did not change the views of most people over Washington’s machination to get rid of Hasina from power.

Lu and his delegation will visit Dhaka to engage with key members of the interim administration in Bangladesh.

Hasina critic Yunus

Nobel Laureate Mohamad Yunus was brought in to head an army-backed interim government after Hasina’s dismissal.

Yunus, a well-known name internationally, seeks to assure Bangladesh’s foreign investors about stability in the country despite initial hiccups after Hasina’s flight.

Yunus also had a long run in with Hasina who had brought criminal charges against him for alleged violation of labour laws while heading the micro-credit agency Grameen Bank.

Yunus and US

The charges were dropped the day Yunus was sworn in to head the interim government as they were found to be “politically motivated”.

Yunus’ closeness with former US president Bill Clinton and his wife Hilary, a former Secretary of State, is known.

Lu and his team will hold talks with Yunus and other advisors to find out how the US can support Bangladesh’s economic growth, financial stability and developmental needs.

Shadow over Indo-US ties

Relations with the US are often described by Indian policy planners as the most consequential one in its foreign policy as the two sides have been cooperating with each other on a vast number of areas.

The two are also preparing for the 2+2 meeting between their foreign and defence ministers in Washington in November and for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue summit later in the year in the US, also involving Japan and Australia.

The ongoing engagement between India and the US shows they are not willing to allow their differences to dictate the overall trajectory of their bilateral relations. As experts say, ties between countries are never based on any single issue.

Friends, yes, but…

However, this cannot dilute the fact that their future ability to cooperate may not carry the same trust that they have enjoyed in the past.

India had earlier encouraged the US to play a bigger role with other countries in South Asia to counter China’s growing footprint in the region. But the experience of Bangladesh is likely to make India more cautious.

In the ultimate count, all countries prioritise their own interests over all others.