The Coup in Bangladesh: The American Empire Never Sleeps!

Why don’t the Americans favor Hasina? Hasina pursued an independent foreign policy, collaborating with Russia, China, and India—actions that did not sit well with the U.S. given Bangladesh’s regional importance. The Americans have supported the opposition in Bangladesh since Hasina came to power, criticizing her at every turn and declaring her an authoritarian, undemocratic leader, although India assured them that Hasina was not authoritarian but merely trying to keep the Islamist opposition at bay. The Americans’ antipathy toward Hasina grew in 2021 when her government refused to join the Quad, the U.S.-Japan-Australia-India alliance aimed at countering China’s influence.

Additionally, Hasina made several revelations regarding illegal U.S. activities, stating that the Americans had promised her an easy victory in January if she allowed them to establish an airbase on St. Martin’s Island, in the south of the country. This explains why the Americans claimed the January elections were rigged, even though India, China, and Russia all confirmed her victory. The American organization that allegedly discovered this fraud is the National Democratic Institute (NDI), funded by the U.S. State Department’s National Endowment for Democracy (NED), popularly known as the “second CIA.” Created by Ronald Reagan in 1983, the NED is a CIA tool for destabilizing foreign governments by sponsoring NGOs in other countries with the aim of spreading “democracy.” Although the NED is funded by the U.S. Congress, its non-governmental status allows the CIA to avoid direct involvement in destabilizing actions.

The NED had already been funding anti-government media in Bangladesh for several years, as it does in all countries with leaders not favored by Uncle Sam, so the organization’s involvement in this operation is undeniable. In May, Hasina further accused the U.S. of illegally attempting to create a “Christian state,” information confirmed by several American analysts. This “K” (Kukiland) project aims to create an artificial nation encompassing parts of Myanmar, Manipur, and Bangladesh to disrupt India’s access to Southeast Asia. It seems no coincidence that the protests began just weeks after Hasina’s declarations…

Who replaced Hasina? Mohammad Yunus, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and a favorite of the American Deep State, was chosen as interim prime minister. At 84 years old, he caught the Americans’ eye back in 1965 when he received a Fulbright scholarship to study in the US. The Americans have always funded Yunus’s NGO, Grameen Bank (the one for which he received the Nobel), which received $7.6 billion from the Americans between 1983 and 2007. In 2009, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and in 2010, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian awards in the US, both awards being signed off on by Obama.

He is only the seventh person globally to receive both American awards and the Nobel Prize (others include Nelson Mandela and Mother Teresa). Since 2010, Yunus has been involved in NED activities, particularly those targeting India, and a document from the U.S. Consulate in Dhaka published by WikiLeaks shows that Yunus has been working against Hasina since 2007. Yunus has had legal issues for several years due to tax evasion but has not been convicted, receiving support from both Obama and Clinton in these cases through letters and public statements (Obama even refused to meet with Hasina in 2011 until all legal actions against Yunus were suspended).

In January this year, Hasina finally managed to bring legal consequences to the Americans’ favorite, indicting him in a case of embezzling over $2 million from Grameen’s social assistance fund. It remains to be seen whether the Americans will make Yunus a winner in the upcoming elections, but it seems highly likely.

How does this coup affect China and India? Firstly, Hasina’s removal jeopardizes one of the key transport corridors of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI): the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) corridor. The BRI is the most important initiative in China’s foreign policy and economy, so any attack on it is an attack on China.

Regarding India, the Americans want a flexible government in Dhaka to use against India. It is true that the Americans and Indians are partners in international relations, but the Americans know that India could become not just an important ally in the fight against China but even a strong rival in a few decades. In either scenario, the Americans want to keep India in an unstable position, and instability in Bangladesh could easily spill over into India.

Bangladesh is a hotbed of anti-Indian sentiment, and its strategic location at the tip of the Bay of Bengal is crucial in the region. Just as Ukraine is Russia’s weak point and the country it needs for access to the Black Sea, Bangladesh is India’s weak point and the country in which it needs a friendly regime for access to the Bay of Bengal.

Bangladesh is not the first country where the U.S. has acted against India – we all remember the saga with Imran Khan, the independent prime minister favored by the majority of citizens who was ousted by the Americans two years ago. In fact, the Americans used the same man in organizing both actions: Donald Lu, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central and South Asian Affairs, whose main task is destabilizing India.

Khan mentioned Lu’s name as a facilitator of his removal, and Lu is the one who went to Bangladesh to denounce the alleged fraud in the January elections. He is also the one who visited India during the late spring elections, avoiding the capital and instead visiting M. K. Stalin’s (an important opposition candidate) state to hinder Modi, who has also become too independent lately. So, history repeats itself, and the Americans continue to use the same strategies in the hope of maintaining their hegemony – even in decline, the empire never sleeps!

By Daria Gusa