National Security Adviser Dr Khalilur Rahman on Thursday met with US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer in Washington, DC, to advocate for a reduction in the 20% reciprocal tariff currently facing Bangladeshi exports.

During the meeting, Ambassador Greer expressed a positive outlook on the proposal and agreed to seriously consider lowering or entirely eliminating tariffs on apparel made with US raw materials.

Dr Rahman emphasized that Bangladesh has already made significant strides in narrowing the bilateral trade gap by increasing imports from the United States and implementing key provisions of the reciprocal trade agreement even before its formal execution.

"Even before the formal execution of the reciprocal trade agreement, Bangladesh has made major strides in reducing the trade gap by substantially increasing imports from the US and has implemented some key aspects of the agreement," he said.

In addition to his primary talks with Ambassador Greer, the National Security Adviser met with Assistant USTR Brendan Lynch to discuss resolving the remaining issues necessary to finalize the trade deal.

Beyond tariff negotiations, Khalilur Rahman sought US support for easing business travel for Bangladeshi nationals, particularly following the country’s inclusion in the US visa bond program.

He also requested access to funding from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to support Bangladesh's private sector.

Ambassador Greer assured him of his commitment to pursuing these matters, while further diplomatic engagements are scheduled (Friday) with senior State Department officials to continue strengthening the partnership.

With Inputs from UNB