DHAKA, 26 July 2021, (TON): Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Naoki Ito has said that Japan will seize the opportunity to find a long-term and lasting solution to the Rohingya crisis with the Myanmar side, noting that the issue is very relevant to the future stability of the entire region.

He said "what we can say right now is Japan will seize the opportunity to raise this very, very important issue with the Myanmar side and its military whenever appropriate. His country will do its best to create an enabling environment for the early repatriation of Rohingyas and will continue to raise the issue with the Myanmar side.

He was responding to a question at a virtual dialogue titled Bangladesh-Japan Relations: Prognosis for the Future, where he delivered the keynote speech.

Cosmos Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Cosmos Group, hosted the dialogue as a part of its ongoing Ambassador's Lecture Series.

The opening remarks were delivered by the Cosmos Foundation Chairman Enayetullah Khan. The session was chaired by Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.

Md Abul Kalam Azad, special envoy, Climate Vulnerable Forum; Hayakawa Yuho, chief representative, JICA Bangladesh Office; Dr Salehuddin Ahmed, former governor, Bangladesh Bank; Masaaki Ohashi, professor, University of the Sacred Heart, Tokyo; Manzurul Huq, columnist, writer and academic; Prof Takahara Akio, dean, Graduate School of Public Policy, the University of Tokyo; and Ambassador (retd) Tariq A Karim, honorary advisor emeritus, Cosmos Foundation, comprised the panel of discussants.

Ambassador Ito said “humanitarian assistance and humanitarian crises are very much part of their vision when they talk about stability and peace of the region.”