The US Ambassador to Bangladesh, Dan Mozena, yesterday rejected news reports that there is a permanent base of US special forces in the country.
“There is no question of US bases in Bangladesh," he told reporters after a meeting at the Detective Branch headquarters at the capital's Minto Road.
“US special forces come here often for various purposes and leave. We have cooperation with Bangladesh and it is all about partnership.
"It's a small team coming and going and what I read in newspaper about bases and all sorts of things, I think that was very creative. It has no bases," he said replying to a query.
Mozena's comments come two days after the BBC quoted US Pacific Commander Admiral Robert Willard as saying at a Congressional hearing, “We have currently special forces assist teams -- Pacific assist teams is the term -- laid down in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, as well as India."
The Bangladeshi media published the report on Saturday.
The US ambassador yesterday visited different units of the DB, including the bomb disposal unit, Special Weapon and Tactics (Swat) and counter-terrorism unit, CTTUC.
Earlier, he spoke at a meeting at the DB office where Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Benazir Ahmed, DB Joint Commissioner Maruf Hassan and commissioners Monirul Islam and Mahbubor Rahman were present.
Terming Bangladesh "a land of hope," Mozena said some people did not share the vision of a Golden Bangladesh and sought to destroy the Bangladesh of peace, tolerance, harmony and democracy.
"These people seek to impose their own values of hatred and intolerance on Bangladesh,” he said, adding, “We call these people terrorists. These terrorists are the enemy of Bangladesh, of America and of every democracy in the world.”
Over the past decade, the US has provided over $19 million in assistance to train and equip Bangladesh police officers, he said
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