A Russian Navy squadron from the Pacific Fleet arrived at Bangladesh’s main port of Chattogram on Sunday, marking the first such visit in over 50 years.
The Russian Embassy in Dhaka remarked in a statement that the visit marked a “huge milestone” for Russia-Bangladesh relations.
Media reported that the Russian naval flotilla comprised anti-submarine warships Admiral Tributs and Admiral Panteleyev and the oceanic tanker Pechenga.
Alexander Mantytskiy, the Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh, was quoted as saying that the previous visit by Russian Navy to Bangladesh was during 1972-74 to clear out mines from the newly-independent nation and save it from a “humanitarian catastrophe”.
During Bangladesh’s War of Liberation in 1971, the Pacific Fleet warships had played a decisive role in deterring American nuclear strike Corp USS Enterprise from making its way to the Bay of Bengal.
Bangladesh-US Political Tensions
The Russian warships’ call at Chattogram port takes place amid growing political tensions between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government and the US ahead of the Bangladesh’s federal election slated for January.
Hasina has accused the Biden administration of interfering in Bangladesh’s internal political process by slapping visa restrictions and threatening to impose sanctions on sitting Bangladeshi officials.
The US has consistently criticized the Hasina government for its action against opposition protestors, who have been demanding that the Prime Minister steps down and instates a care-taker government ahead of the election.
Meanwhile, officials from the ruling Awami League have blamed Peter Haas, the US Ambassador to Dhaka, of tacitly backing the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and inciting anti-government protests.