Kathmandu, September 24

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba met United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

According to a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs PM Deuba and UN Secretary General Guterres exchanged views on a number of issues ranging from implementation of the Constitution to Nepal’s role in UN peacekeeping operations; and from Nepal-UN cooperation to the evolving challenges to development.

During the meeting, the Secretary-General expressed condolences on the loss of lives and property caused by the recent floods in Nepal. He congratulated Deuba on completing the local level polls in Nepal, while also expressing satisfaction with the latest developments in Nepal. He also appreciated Nepal’s contribution to peacekeeping operations.

PM Deuba updated the Secretary-General on the recent developments, including preparations for provincial and parliamentary elections. Reiterating Nepal’s commitment to peacekeeping, the PM urged the United Nations to make best use of Nepal’s Birendra Peace Operations Training Centre, the oldest in the region, and help develop it as a regional centre of excellence for peacekeeping training.

The PM also underlined the need to increase the number of Nepali nationals in higher positions commensurate with Nepal’s contribution as the sixth largest troop and police contributing country.

The PM also drew Guterres’ attention to the need to place LDC and LLDC issues at the centre of the work of the UN. The prime minister also extended an invitation to the SG to visit Nepal, according to the release.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Krishna Bahadur Mahara, Minister of Women, Children and Social Welfare Asha Koirala, Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi and Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations Durga Prasad Bhattarai were also present at the meeting. From the United Nations side too, senior officials, including Atul Khare, UN Under-Secretary-General for field support Jeffrey Feltman and the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs were also present in the meeting.