What Asif Mahmud said about trade agreements and kitchen cabinets

The National Citizens Party (NCP) has claimed that it was not informed in advance about the recently concluded trade agreement with the United States. Party spokesperson Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan alleged that the deal was rushed through just three days before the national elections.
He made these remarks during an emergency press briefing held on Tuesday (May 26) at the NCP central office in Dhaka.
Asif Mahmud said that although various parties were reportedly told about the agreement, the NCP was not consulted at any stage. He added that after speaking with the party convener and other senior leaders, it was confirmed that their concerns and opinions were not taken into account before finalizing the deal.
He further alleged that the former interim government’s national security adviser, who is currently serving as the foreign minister, acted in alignment with the BNP. According to him, the government was given three months to complete the agreement, but it was finalized within just one month.
“There are public questions as to why the agreement was signed hastily just before the elections despite having more time. Whether this was part of a coordinated move with the BNP to shift responsibility onto the interim government is also being discussed,” he said.
Asif Mahmud also claimed that the BNP had a role in the overall process and that the agreement was implemented through the current foreign minister. He suggested that the party is now attempting to distance itself by labeling it as a decision of the previous administration.
During the press conference, he also commented on the so-called “kitchen cabinet” within the interim government. In response to a question, he said that while he had heard of its existence, he was not a member of it.
Notably, in a television interview aired on Monday, former foreign affairs adviser Touhid Hossain claimed that many key decisions of the interim government were taken by an informal “kitchen cabinet” that reportedly met every Tuesday.
Touhid Hossain further stated that he had once attended such a meeting at Jamuna on a special occasion and later learned that these meetings were held regularly. However, he claimed that the foreign ministry had no involvement in the trade agreement signed with the United States just three days before the elections.