In world history, the cancellation of a state dinner in honor of a state guest has occurred in only two other countries besides Bangladesh. When this news first reached me as the Chief Editor of Source News Bangla, I verified it and dropped a hint on social media. Consequently, some sensible people aggressively labeled me a rumormonger. I sincerely thank and express my gratitude to those friends once again. However, the reason for the cancellation of this state dinner is entirely unprecedented—a reason that has never occurred in world history. Bangladesh's Foreign Minister, Dr. Khalilur Rahman, is someone who always plays on all sides. When he was furiously holding a press conference, claiming that the Awami League issue was irrelevant, that the Awami League was not pertinent, and that no discussion had taken place on this matter—he couldn't hide his visible irritation, repeatedly saying, "No, no." Right at that moment, Sergio Gor gave several positive indications during a meeting with a designated representative of the Awami League at a five-star hotel. Source News has a lot of relevant information regarding this in hand. But the bigger news is that during the scheduled 45-minute meeting with Tarique Rahman, after a 19-minute one-sided conversation, the remaining 14 minutes were spent on three phone calls where he merely said, "Yes sir, yes sir, yes sir." If I state the names and issues explicitly, my friends might attack me once again. In the overall political context of Bangladesh, the Yunus government's widespread corruption, looting, thumbing its nose at the Indo-Pacific policy, acting as the sole guardian of the region's maritime territory, manufacturing products in Bangladesh to export to the Northeast, taking greater control of the army, providing a corridor to the United States, and placing hand-picked incompetents in state power have deeply humiliated Bangladesh. Although no one desired this, as the issue has come to light with strong words, all the trickeries have now been exposed, and they will continue to be exposed in the future. Sergio Gor himself, along with his American 'parrots' (mouthpieces), was surprised to see that nearly a majority of the Yunus government's cabinet members were invited to the state dinner organized in honor of the state guest. "Is this a continuation of the Yunus government?"—Dr. Khalilur could not provide a satisfactory answer to this question. "Is this the foreign policy adopted by the Yunus government?"—State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaid could not answer this, nor could Tarique Rahman. Inevitably, the discussion brought up the controversies surrounding Jamaat: their opposition during the Liberation War, and recently, their attempts to inflate their strength far beyond reality. Their moral turpitude, corruption, and electoral results achieved with low voter turnout and evening vote counts are matters the world strongly believes in. These issues—being a 'paper tiger' and relying on empty rhetoric—have created a completely incongruous environment for establishing long-term peace and implementing the Pacific policy. Under these circumstances, the Awami League is on standby as a singular force. The way they governed the state—taking public support into account, maintaining mutual trust and respect in international policy, pursuing long-term peace by adopting a balanced approach with major powers, and preserving commercial continuity—deserves high praise. This discussion has now surfaced publicly. Although no party has finalized the matter yet, multiple sources in Delhi have confirmed it: gradually, over the next two to three weeks, the political instability and unrest in Bangladesh will begin to subside; and the hint comes from the Pentagon. Bangladesh stands at a strategic crossroads concerning the preservation of stability in South Asia and the successful implementation of the Indo-Pacific policy. In this political game involving three poles—Washington, Delhi, and Beijing—the new equation forming around the realignment of internal forces and the return of Sheikh Hasina will determine the trajectory of Bangladesh's sovereignty and foreign policy in the coming days. Those who keep track of these political developments know very well that last December, the Indo-Pacific policy was passed in the US Senate by a 127/71 vote based on an "overlapping theory"—meaning, where India is needed, India will step forward, and where the United States is needed, the United States will step forward. The closed-door meeting between Dinesh Trivedi and Sergio Gor hints exactly at this. If I say this, my friends will start cursing me again. With all due respect to them, I just want to say: have a little more patience, as Bangladesh is about to witness several major events. Sheikh Hasina's return is only a matter of time.

Author: Dr. Abul Hasnat Milton, Chief Editor, The Source News Bangla