KATHMANDU: Heads of Mission of European Union Countries, Switzerland and Norway, today welcomed the formation of the High-Level Political Mechanism.

The mechanism was formed to deal with outstanding issues of the peace process and to pave way for its logical conclusion.

In a press release issued here, the envoys stated that 2010 is a critical year for Nepal's peace process. After a year of slow progress in the implementation of the peace agreements and in the constitution drafting process, the parties need to make use of the newly formed mechanism to rebuild trust and rediscover the spirit of compromise needed to complete the task, the statement added.

The envoys further believed that the priorities of the mechanism would be the sincere implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the completion of its key commitments, mainly the drafting of a new constitution.

The envoys also lauded the discharge of minors from the cantonments. They, however, urged the government to deal with the issues of verified former combatants as soon as possible.