State Minister Humayun Kabir leaves for Jeddah to attend OIC meeting

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humayun Kabir has left for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to attend an emergency meeting of foreign ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states. He departed Dhaka for Jeddah on Tuesday, August 25, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs sources.

He will attend the emergency meeting scheduled for Thursday, August 27, at the OIC headquarters in Jeddah. Elections for the post of OIC secretary-general are expected to be held at the meeting.

The term of the current secretary-general, Hussein Ibrahim, will end in November. Alongside the election of the new secretary-general, discussions will be held on recent developments in the Palestinian situation and the organisation's future activities.

Meanwhile, discussions are ongoing regarding Bangladesh's inclusion in the 'Makkah Joint Defence Pact' or 'Makkah Defence Pact'. State Minister Humayun Kabir said Bangladesh has expressed a positive attitude and interest in this defence agreement signed between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. However, no formal progress or final decision has been made on the matter yet.

The state minister said it would not be unusual for Bangladesh to join such a security agreement among Islamic countries. The matter is being viewed positively.

He also said discussions on this issue with Saudi Arabia may take place on the sidelines of the OIC meeting, and Bangladesh could reach a final decision after those discussions.