KATHMANDU: Non-residential Ambassador of Laos to Nepal Southam Sakonhninhom on Wednesday handed over a cheque of US$ 50,000 to support victims of the devastating earthquake that struck Nepal on April 25. The cheque was handed over to Minister for Foreign Affairs Mahendra Bahadur Pandey when the envoy called on him at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The minister expressed sincere thanks to the ambassador and the Government of Laos for the generous support.

Sakonhninhom, who is based in New Delhi, had presented his Letter of Credence to President Ram Baran Yadav earlier in the day. Along with him, non-residential ambassadors — Nadir Patel of Canada, Teresita C Daza of Philippines, Tarek Mubarak Bin Daineh of Bahrain and Enzo Angeloni of Italy — also presented their credentials to the president, according to a MoFA press statement. Later, all of the ambassadors separately called on Foreign Minister Pandey and discussed matters of bilateral relations and mutual benefit.