Dhaka/Washington DC, April 21 — Bangladesh’s military intelligence chief, Major General Jahangir Alam, has arrived in Washington DC for high-level discussions with the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), according to official documents accessed by this publication.
Maj Gen Alam, Director General of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), departed from Dhaka on April 20 aboard Qatar Airways Flight QR-639, accompanied by Brigadier General Syed Anwar Mahmud, head of the Counter Terrorism Intelligence Bureau (CTIB), and a lieutenant from the Bangladesh Army’s Ordnance Division. Their spouses also traveled with them, transiting through Doha en route to the U.S. capital.
Sources familiar with the itinerary say the core purpose of Maj Gen Alam’s visit is to brief CIA officials on imminent military developments in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. The briefing is understood to center around a joint military offensive expected to be led by a coalition of ethnic forces, including the Arakan Army, the Chin National Front, and potentially the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), with logistical support from Bangladesh.
This visit coincides with increased diplomatic and military activity related to regional security. Just hours after the DGFI-led delegation left for Washington, Bangladesh’s newly appointed National Security Advisor Khalilur Rahman held a high-level meeting with top security and border officials, including the Principal Staff Officer of the Armed Forces Division, Lt Gen Kamrul Hassan, NSI chief Maj Gen Sarwar Farid, BGB DG Maj Gen Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui, and Coast Guard DG Rear Admiral Ziaul Haque.
Discussions reportedly focused on developments along Bangladesh’s land and maritime borders, as well as the movement of Rohingya refugees and actions by the Arakan Army in the border regions.
In a parallel development, a three-member delegation from the U.S. State Department — including US Charge D’Affaires in Naypyidaw Susan Stevenson and deputy assistant secretaries Nicole Ann Chulick and Andrew R Herrup — wrapped up a strategic visit to Bangladesh last week. Their itinerary included visits to key areas in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and Cox’s Bazar, which host large Rohingya refugee populations and are strategic locations near the Myanmar border.
Notably, the Bangladesh Army has already designated a site in Silkhali mouza, around 30 kilometers north of Teknaf on the Bay of Bengal coast, to establish a logistics and supply base. This base is expected to support allied operations aimed at recapturing three key townships in Rakhine State — Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, and Manaung — currently under Myanmar military control.
With the monsoon season approaching in May and expected to last through August, the window for launching ground operations is narrowing. Sources suggest the timing and scope of the offensive will be central to Maj Gen Alam’s discussions with CIA officials.
Bangladesh’s security apparatus appears to be accelerating preparations in coordination with regional and international partners, setting the stage for a potentially transformative military intervention in western Myanmar.