Bangladesh has been excluded from US President Joe Biden's Summit for Democracy, even though Pakistan made it to the list of invitees.
From South Asia, invitees in the summit -- to be held virtually on December 9 and 10 -- include India, Pakistan and Nepal, while Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka did not make it to the list published by the White House.
A total of 110 countries will be joining the summit.
The democracy summit, pledged by Biden before his election, aims at helping stop democratic backsliding and the erosion of rights and freedoms worldwide.
Israel, considered a major non-Nato ally by the US, and Iraq are the only two countries invited from the Middle East. Meanwhile, traditional Arab allies of the US -- Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and the UAE -- have not been invited.
The list also includes Brazil even though its president, Jair Bolsonaro, has long been condemned for his far right views and was a staunch supporter of the controversial former US president Donald Trump.
The State Department list shows the event will bring together mature democracies such as France and Sweden but also countries such as the Philippines, India and Poland, where activists say democracy is under threat, reports Reuters.
The December 2021 Summit will kick off a year of action by participants to make democracies more responsive and resilient, and to build a broader community of partners committed to global democratic renewal.
"We aim to show how democracies can deliver on the issues that matter most to people: strengthening accountable governance, expanding economic opportunities, protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms, and enabling lives of dignity," said White House in a statement.
It said, "We will show how open, rights-respecting societies can work together to effectively tackle the great challenges of our time, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and growing inequality.
"The US government will announce commitments in areas such as bolstering free and independent media; fighting corruption; defending free and fair elections; strengthening civic capacity; advancing the civic and political leadership of women, girls, and marginalized community members; and harnessing technology for democratic renewal."
The United States will also hold itself accountable to these commitments on a global public stage.
