TDS Desk:

Senior BNP leader Nazrul Islam Khan has expressed optimism that Bangladesh’s relations with the United States will remain unaffected under Donald Trump’s presidency.

“We believe that the two governments in these democratic countries are democratically supported. So we do not anticipate any significant changes in the relationship between the two governments and the countries,” he told reporters after a meeting with a delegation of the Khelafat Majlis at the BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office on Wednesday.

A nine-member delegation of the Khelafat Majlis, led by Ameer Maulana Abdul Basit Azad, had an hour-long meeting with BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Nazrul Islam Khan.

In response to a question about the potential impact on US-Bangladesh relations following Donald Trump’s inauguration as president, Nazrul said: “Individual leaders do not have much influence over state policymaking.”

“But America is a country where the president holds significant power and influence. Even after that, we do not think the change in presidency will have much impact on Bangladesh’s relationship with the United States,” he added.

Nazrul, a BNP standing committee member, also said: “The change in power not only took place in the United States but also occurred in Bangladesh.”

“Just as the change happened here with the support of the people, the shift in state power there also took place through people’s votes,” he further said.

Donald Trump returned to power as the 47th president of the United States, having been sworn in on Monday.

In his inaugural address, Trump declared: “The golden age of America begins right now.”