Bangladesh has asked France to help it deal with the difficulties it anticipates encountering once it leaves the least developed nation (LDC) category. According to a press release, the request was made by Foreign Advisor Md. Touhid Hossain at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday during a courtesy call by Jean-Marc Séré-Charlet, the recently appointed French Ambassador to Bangladesh.

The Foreign Advisor welcomed the ambassador to his new position and said he was certain that during his term, bilateral ties will continue to improve. The forthcoming national election in Bangladesh, trade and investment, defense cooperation, migration, and concerns pertaining to the Bangladeshi diaspora were just a few of the many topics they discussed.

Touhid Hossain highlighted France’s longstanding development partnership and its support for the interim government’s democratic transition. He encouraged deeper French engagement in trade and investment, development cooperation, skills development, climate action, and energy-sector collaboration.

Ambassador Séré-Charlet reaffirmed France’s commitment to advancing bilateral cooperation and enhancing trade, investment, and people-to-people ties. He reiterated France’s view of Bangladesh as a peaceful and democratic nation and expressed interest in expanding collaboration in the development sector.

In order to discuss bilateral, regional, and international issues of shared interest, the French ambassador also met with Foreign Secretary Ambassador Asad Alam Siam later that day. The ambassador was promised complete cooperation by the Foreign Secretary for the duration of his stay in Bangladesh.