Bangladesh celebrates the glorious true victory of 1971. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said this in a statement on its Facebook post on Wednesday (December 18).

According to diplomatic sources, the statement was made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message on social media X, claiming the final victory achieved on December 16, 1971 as a 'historic victory for India'.

In a Facebook post today titled 'Historical Reality', the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that sovereign and independent Bangladesh emerged on December 16, 1971, after a 9-month-long struggle and bloody war. In the Facebook post, the ministry highlighted what happened and what could have happened at the historic Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka on December 16, 1971, based on the description of that day given by former Indian Foreign Secretary and National Security Advisor JN Dixit in his book 'Liberation and Beyond: India-Bangladesh Relations'.

Dixit said, “The failure of the Indian military high command to ensure the presence of Bangladeshi commander General M.A.G. Osmany in the joint forces at the surrender ceremony [of the Pakistani army] and not to include him as one of the signatories [to the surrender document] was a major political blunder; a major political blunder.”

[There] The official excuse given for his absence was that a helicopter had left to carry him. But it did not reach Dhaka in time for the surrender ceremony. The widely held suspicion is that his [Osmany] helicopter was diverted to keep the focus on the Indian military commanders throughout the surrender ceremony, so that he could not reach Dhaka in time. This unfortunate blunder could have been avoided by India. The incident caused quite a stir in political circles in Bangladesh.

Many political misunderstandings arose in the early days of India-Bangladesh relations after Bangladesh's independence, which could have been avoided if Osmany had been present at the surrender ceremony.'

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs concluded the Facebook post by saying, "We celebrate our glorious victory in 1971; we celebrate the truth."

Commenting that Bangladeshis who came to the embassy for services have been subjected to various harassments in the past, Ambassador Mushfiqul Fazal Ansari said that he hopes that expatriate Bangladeshis who come to the embassy will be treated well from now on.

He mentioned the smart workforce of the officials assigned to the embassy and said, even if our remittance warriors cannot be welcomed with a rose when they come to the embassy, at least welcome them with a smile.

He said these things at a discussion and cultural program on behalf of the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington on Tuesday (December 17) on the occasion of the great Victory Day.

Speaking as a special guest, Ambassador (Designate) Mushfiqul Fazal Ansari said, the 1971 Liberation War was not just a struggle for independence; it was a struggle to establish our identity, dignity and democratic values. Our victory was not given to us as a gift, but we had to earn it at the cost of millions of lives.

He further said, the successful revolution of July 2024 reminds us that the fight for freedom and democracy never ends. In 1971, we fought against external exploitation; on July 24, we fought against fascism.

He said, under the leadership of Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus, our country is moving towards a bright future.

Recalling the long-standing relationship between the United States and Bangladesh, Mushfiq said, the recognition of the United States after our independence was an important chapter in history. Today, we reaffirm our joint commitment to democracy, freedom and peace. We pledge to further strengthen the relationship between the two countries.

Newly appointed Ambassador Asad Alam Siam, in his welcome speech, inaugurated the event by paying tribute to the spirit and sacrifice of the Liberation War.

He said, independent Bangladesh emerged through a long struggle and war. This time, the celebration of victory after the revolution of ‘24 has attained a different dimension. Ambassador Siam mentioned that the current government led by Professor Yunus is working to build a happy and prosperous Bangladesh. He gratefully recalled the contribution of the United States to the development and democratic journey of Bangladesh.

In his speech as a special guest, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Nicole Chulik said that the United States supports all the reform efforts of the interim government in Bangladesh led by Nobel laureate Professor Yunus. She said that the sacrifice and struggle behind Bangladesh's victory are a unique example in the world. Stating that she wants to see Bangladesh in a democratic and prosperous Bangladesh, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State said that the United States is proud to be the largest partner in the development of Bangladesh.

She said that the United States stands by the current government of Bangladesh and we welcome the government's steps to establish democratic values, protect human rights and advance reform programs. Referring to Professor Yunus's fruitful meeting with President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the recent UN General Assembly, Nichol said that the cooperative relationship between the two countries will be further strengthened in the coming days to protect the common interests of the two countries.

The event was attended by Monica Jacobsen, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Ambassador William B. Mylam, and the Director of the US National Security Council, among others.

Two new pairs of passenger trains from Dhaka to Khulna and Benapole via Kashiani Junction will be launched on December 24.

This information was given in a notification signed by Rezaul Karim Siddiqui, Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Railways on Wednesday (December 18). On that day, Muhammad Fawzul Kabir Khan, Adviser to the Ministry of Railways, will inaugurate the train service.

It is said that two new pairs of passenger trains from Dhaka to Khulna and Benapole via Kashiani Junction will be launched on December 24. 'Jahanabad Express' on the Khulna-Dhaka-Khulna route and 'Ruposi Bangla' Express on the Benapole-Dhaka-Benapole route will run regularly with a one-day break every week. With the addition of these newly launched trains, it will be possible to reach Khulna/Benapole from Dhaka in just four and a half hours.

It is learned that the new route train will reach Dhaka from Khulna via Padma Bridge via Singia, Narail, Modhumoti Bridge, Kashiani in Gopalganj, and Bhanga in Faridpur via Khulna. The return train from Dhaka will go to Benapole via Jashore in the afternoon. It will return to Dhaka from Benapole on the same route. Then it will return to Khulna from Dhaka via Narail in the afternoon. The old Khulna-Dhaka rail route is 376 kilometers. The new Khulna-Dhaka route is 208 kilometers. This route will be reduced by 168 kilometers. The new route will take only four and a quarter hours.

It is worth noting that currently, it takes 9 hours 30 minutes to travel from Dhaka by train to Khulna via Tangail-Ishwardi and 7 hours 35 minutes to travel to Benapole via Rajbari, meaning that the Dhaka-Khulna/Benapole journey will take 5 hours 35 minutes and about 4 hours less time, respectively.

The ship 'MV Yuan Jiang Fa Zhong' is arriving at Chattogram port for the second time from Karachi port in Pakistan with container goods.

It will reach the waters of Chattagram port next Friday (December 22), its local representative said.

This time the ship has a potential of 825 single containers, which is double the first time. The first time the ship came to Chattogram from Karachi with 370 single containers. Of these, 297 single containers were brought from Pakistan, while the rest were from the United Arab Emirates.

It is believed that the ship may have raw materials, chemicals, minerals and consumer goods for the garment industry. This can be confirmed if the shipping company submits a detailed list of imported goods online.

A direct container ship service between Pakistan's Karachi port and Chattogram port was launched in the second week of November 2023. It is operated by the United Arab Emirates-based Feeder Lines DMCC, and Regency Lines Limited is working as their local representative in Bangladesh.

The group's executive director, Anis Ud Dawla, said that the rate of container arrivals from Pakistan has increased this time compared to the first time. Now a ship is coming from the United Arab Emirates to Chattogram via Pakistan once in 38 to 42 days. If the number of containers increases, the number of ships on this new route can be increased.

This new service is planned to bring and receive goods from Pakistan and Bangladesh as well as Indonesia, Malaysia, India and the United Arab Emirates. However, this is the second time that this ship is coming from the United Arab Emirates to Chattogram port via Pakistan.

According to the Marine Vessel Traffic website, the ship is currently near Sri Lanka. It left for Chattogram on December 11 after loading its last container from Karachi port.