Shahriar Alam questions role of ex-US diplomats William Milam, Jon Danilowicz

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam on Saturday questioned the role of former US diplomats stationed in Dhaka William Milam and Jon Danilowicz, noting that they are "not impartial".

"Everyone must know these ex diplomats are not impartial. They never were, even when they were serving in Dhaka. Question is, are they doing it free of charge? If not, who is paying them? We know the why answer," he tweeted, which included a video.

A Bangladeshi diplomat retweeted Shahriar's tweet, saying, "Nothing is free in the Western society! The wage is based on hourly service!"

Jon Danilowicz replied to the state minister's tweet, saying, "The Honorable State Minister knows this is a lie and it is sad that he is reduced to engaging in character assassination. I understand how much pressure he must be under and regret that he chooses to engage at such a base level. My affection for Bangladesh and its citizens is genuine and I intend to continue to do my small part to promote democracy and human rights there and elsewhere."

The video story tweeted by Shahriar Alam showed the ex diplomats' affiliation with the former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's Assistant Press Secretary Mushfiqul Fazal Ansarey.

William Milam served as the ambassador in Dhaka from September 1990 to October 1993 and is the editor of the South Asia Perspective magazine while Jon Danilowicz, who served in Dhaka twice including during the military-backed caretaker regime in 2007 and 2008, is the editor-at-large.

The "BNP-funded" magazine is run by Mushfiqul Fazal Ansarey as its executive editor.

Ansarey, who is also the editor of a news portal JustNews, is frequently seen asking questions about Bangladesh in the regular press briefings at the State Department in Washington and the UN in New York and readers view those questions as politically motivated questions in favour of BNP.

In the video story, the question was asked: "How can US diplomats become advocates for a party that is now led by a fugitive acting chief Tarique Rahman already dubbed as a "symbol of violent politics and regarded as a threat to US interest for colluding with militants and indulging in rampant corruption."

It shared old reports from WikiLeaks where the US diplomat's communication on Tarique Rahman was leaked.