The United States has vehemently denied any involvement in the resignation of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who stepped down on August 5th. Allegations of US involvement in Hasina’s ouster have been met with strong rebuttals from the US Department of State.
Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the US Department of State, dismissed claims of US involvement as ‘laughable’ during a press briefing. Patel asserted that accusations of US interference are ‘absolutely false,’ emphasizing that the United States was not involved in the political events that led to Hasina’s resignation.
Patel acknowledged the spread of misinformation regarding the recent events in Bangladesh, stating that ‘a lot of disinformation has been spread over the recent weeks.’ He highlighted the US’s commitment to combating misinformation and strengthening information integrity within the regional ecosystem, particularly among their South Asian partners.
The US’s denial comes after Sheikh Hasina’s son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, claimed that ‘foreign forces’ were behind the protests in Bangladesh. Joy alleged that these forces were capable of smuggling and supplying weapons to protesters, indicating a level of coordinated effort. However, this allegation was also refuted by Michael Kugelman, a US-based foreign policy expert and Director of the South Asia Institute at The Wilson Center.
Kugelman stated that there is no ‘plausible evidence’ to support Joy’s claims and that the protests in Bangladesh stemmed from internal factors. He attributed the protests to student dissatisfaction with job quotas and the government’s subsequent harsh crackdown on protesters, which ultimately escalated the movement.
Kugelman further argued that the burden of proof lies with those alleging foreign interference and that concrete evidence needs to be presented. He highlighted the difficulty of conclusively proving or disproving claims of foreign influence, emphasizing the need for plausible explanations to support such accusations.
