KATHMANDU, MAY 24

Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali in a telephone conversation today with Wendy Sherman, the Deputy Secretary of State of the United States of America, has agreed to accelerate economic partnerships in view of the uphill task of post-COVID recovery.

Various matters concerning Nepal-US relations, cooperation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and common international agendas were discussed during the talk.

While expressing satisfaction over the overall state of Nepal-US relations, the two sides agreed to enhance bilateral and multilateral engagements in their mutual interests.

Minister Gyawali conveyed the message of gratitude on behalf of the Government of Nepal to the United States for the generous COVID-related cooperation, which helped scale up the national capacity to address the pandemic.

Commending the US leadership in garnering collaborative response against the global pandemic, the foreign minister requested the deputy secretary of state to accord due priority to Nepal in the course of distribution of surplus vaccines among developing nations.

Deputy Secretary Sherman assured that the new US Administration would continue to extend cooperation in Nepal's socioeconomic sector, including the recent battle against the pandemic.

Appreciating the friendship the two countries have enjoyed over the decades, she hoped that key projects in the pipeline under US cooperation would open up further avenues of prosperity for Nepal. During the conversation, the two sides shared their commitment to work together on climate action, particularly in the context of Nepal's bid to hold Sagarmatha Sambaad in October.

They also agreed to accelerate economic partnerships in view of the uphill task of post-COVID recovery.

A version of this article appears in the print on May 25, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.