Bangladesh and the United States are holding the ninth annual bilateral security dialogue in Dhaka as part of "comprehensive security relationship" between the two governments.

Khandker Masudul Alam, Director General (North America) is leading the Bangladesh delegation while the US Side is led by Mira Resnick, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Regional Security in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs.

The dialogue began at 9am on Tuesday at the Foreign Service Academy.

The security dialogue is an annual, civilian-led discussion that touches on all elements of the security relationship between the two countries.

Representatives from both sides will discuss Indo-Pacific regional issues, security and human rights, military cooperation, peacekeeping, security assistance, and counterterrorism, among other topics, said the US Embassy in Dhaka in a media note.

The United States and Bangladesh have a strong security partnership and share many interests in the Indo-Pacific region, said the embassy.

Both countries share a vision to ensure the Indo-Pacific region is free, open, peaceful, and secure.  

This year, the security dialogue closely follows the bilateral defense dialogue, which took place August 23 and 24 in Dhaka.

The bilateral defense dialogue featured senior officers and civilians from the US and Bangladeshi militaries.

They discussed a range of issues specific to the military-to-military relationship, including military education, peacekeeping and upcoming military exercises, including next year’s Disaster Response Exercise & Exchange.

The security dialogue covers a wide range of issues related to partnership between the two countries including strategic priorities and regional security issues, defense cooperation, civilian security cooperation, UN peacekeeping, counter-terrorism, and countering violent extremism.