KATHMANDU, JULY 16

Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayan Prakash Saud left for Thailand today to attend the BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers' Retreat scheduled to be held on 17 July 2023 in Bangkok.

A delegation led by Minister Saud left on a Thai Airways airplane to Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.

The BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers' Retreat is scheduled to discuss the pertinent agenda of cooperation under BIMSTEC.

The Foreign Minister will pay courtesy call on Prayut Chan-o-Cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand scheduled jointly for the visiting BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers in the afternoon of 17 July 2023.

The Foreign Minister will interact with his counterparts from the BIMSTEC region on issues of common interests. Nepal is the lead country to promote people-to-people contacts in the BIMSTEC region.

During his visit, Minister Saud will also hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the BIMSTEC Member States on the sideline of the Retreat.

The Foreign Minister will return home on 18 July 2023.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organization that was established on 6 June 1997 with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration.

Initially known as BIST-EC (Bangladesh-India-Sri Lanka-Thailand Economic Cooperation), the organisation is now known as BIMSTEC and comprises seven Member States with the admission of Myanmar on 22 December 1997, and Bhutan and Nepal in February 2004.