Staff Reporter: US President Joseph R Biden and Bangladesh Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus have affirmed the close partnership between Washington and Dhaka, which is rooted in shared democratic values and strong people-to-people ties.

President Biden welcomed further engagement between the two governments and offered continued US support as Bangladesh implements its new reform agenda, said a White House statement after the two leaders met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Tuesday.

The US president congratulated Prof Yunus on his recent appointment as the head of the interim government of Bangladesh.

Prof Yunus was sworn in as the chief adviser of the interim government on August 8 last after ousted Sheikh Hasina resigned to the President and fled the country in the face of a student-led mass uprising against her government.