Dr Khalilur Rahman: Man of the Hour

No matter how you look at it, Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman's election as president of the UN General Assembly is a matter of pride and prestige for Bangladesh, although not unprecedented. I am of the generation that took great pride in the late, redoubtable Humayun Rasheed Chowdhury's election as UNGA president for the 41st session, in 1986-87, while serving as the country's foreign minister. Forty years later, the current foreign minister has walked exactly in his footsteps. He is very much the man of the hour, and lends considerable gravitas and know-how to the present government's foreign policy operation.