DHAKA, June 4: The Bangladesh foreign minister said on Friday that his country would not send troops anywhere in the world without a UN mandate.

Morshed Khan's statement came a day before US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is due to visit Bangladesh amid speculation that Washington would ask Dhaka to send troops to Iraq.

"I would like to say clearly that we never send troops to shoot or get shot anywhere in the world," Mr Morshed told newsmen at Zia International Airport on return from a five-day visit to India.

"We will get to know each other at the meeting (with Mr Rumsfeld on Saturday) and later apprise Prime Minister Khaleda of the outcome of our discussion."