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The United States want Bangladesh's participation in peacekeeping in south Lebanon under the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) following the UN Security Council resolution on the ceasefire, reports UNB.
But Dhaka want to know the details of the UN terms of reference for new deployment of 13,000 troops to expand the strength of the UNIFIL to 15,000 to monitor the ceasefire.
Talking to reporters, Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan said the US State Department has communicated its desire to the Bangladesh UN Mission in New York for Dhaka's troops contribution to the UNIFIL which currently has a 2,000 man force.
A meeting of the UN peacekeeping commission will be held Thursday at its headquarters in New York on peacekeeping in Lebanon. State Department representative and Bangladesh Permanent Representative Ambassador Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury will attend the meeting.
"We're taking a very positive line, but first of all we want to know what our troops will have to do in south Lebanon and also see our capacity and capability," Khan said.
The Foreign Minister said, "Most important thing is the question of security and safety of my soldiers."
Bangladesh is the largest contributor of troops in UN peacekeeping missions with approximately 11,000 soldiers operating as Blue Helmet peacekeepers in 11 countries around the world.
Bangladesh has not yet worked under the UNIFIL. "We're in touch with US and UN on the question of Dhaka's participation in UNIFIL," Khan said.
The FM said Bangladesh never made any mistake in its foreign policy in the past and will not make any mistake in future. "We're standing with our heads high through our successful peacekeeping mission," he said.
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