Kathmandu, October 26:

The special envoy of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Carsten Nilaus Pedersen, who is also the Ambassador, Under-Secretary for Bilateral Cooperation, today said that the government would lose legitimacy if fresh dates for the constituent assembly polls are not announced immediately.

Earlier it was announced that the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark, Per Stig Moller, will visit Nepal. But Moller’s visit was cancelled due to the announcement of a snap poll in Denmark scheduled for November 13. Moller returned home from New Delhi. Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a press release informed that the Danish delegation, which, besides Pedersen, included the Danish Ambassador to Nepal and other senior officials from the Danish foreign ministry, met the prime minister, top leaders of the CPN-UML and the CPN-Maoist, representatives of the UNMIN, the Speaker and leaders of the civil society.

During its three-day (October 24-26) stay in Nepal, the delegation held working-level meeting with the Nepali side led by Hira B Thapa, the joint-secretary and head of Europe and America division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Talking to the media today, Pederson said that Denmark, which provides over two billion rupees in development assistance to Nepal, is committed to the long-term support in Nepal’s peace process and other development activities. He, however, added that his government is ‘deeply concerned’ about the lack of progress in the peace process and the postponement of the polls. “Further postponement would be very unfortunate as there is no option to the CA polls,” he said, adding, “Stakeholders should implement the crucial provisions of the peace accord and build trust and confidence among each other.”

Commenting on the present political deadlock here, Pederson said that he has urged the parties to ‘compromise’ and ‘move ahead’ and address the ‘root causes’ of the conflict. He also laid stress on ‘inclusion’ process, which, in his view, is key to resolving the Tarai crisis as well. Stressing the importance of the role played by the UN here, he opined that Denmark wants to see the UN’s mandate extended and strengthened in Nepal.