Russia on Friday (December 15) claimed that the United States ahead of January 7 elections is planning to disrupt Bangladesh’s present state and create 'Arab Spring'-like situation.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson MV Zakharova made the statement during regular press briefing.

Part of the briefing was published on the website of the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Arab Spring or the First Arab Spring was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in Tunisia in response to corruption and economic stagnation.

The Russian official said, on December 12-13, in a number of districts of Bangladesh, opponents of the current government blocked road traffic, burned buses, and clashed with the police. We see a direct connection between these events and the inflammatory activity of Western diplomatic missions in Dhaka. In particular, US Ambassador P. Haas, which we already talked aboutat the briefing on November 22.

There are serious reasons to fear that in the coming weeks an even wider arsenal of pressure, including sanctions, may be used against the government of Bangladesh, which is undesirable to the West. Key industries may come under attack, as well as a number of officials who will be accused without evidence of obstructing the democratic will of citizens in the upcoming parliamentary elections on January 7, 2024. If the results of the people's will are not satisfactory to the United States, attempts to further destabilize the situation in Bangladesh along the lines of the “Arab Spring” are likely.

Unfortunately, there is little chance that Washington will come to its senses and refrain from yet another gross interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state. We are confident, however, that despite all the machinations of external forces, the issue of power in Bangladesh will ultimately be decided by the friendly people of this country, and no one else.

BDST: 1436 HRS, DEC 17, 2023
MSK