Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Nepal tries to correct diplomatic blunder

After the 'diplomatic blunder' by the party co-chairman Puspa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) led government has claimed that it stands for peace, stability and unity of Venezuela. "Nepal calls for resolution of differences through peaceful means," a press note released today by the Foreign Ministry reads.
It also said that the people of Venezuela have the ultimate right to take a decision on the country’s political and constitutional course. "We have been closely following the recent political development in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela,” further reads the press note, adding, "In line with its principled position, Nepal believes that internal political problems of a country need to be resolved within its constitutional parameters in a democratic manner, free from external interference."
However, Nepal’s official position – of the non-aligned – bends away from the statement released by ruling NCP (NCP) co-chairman Dahal on January 25. On Friday, the NCP had issued a statement bearing recognition to democratically elected constitutional President Nicolas Maduro. The NCP (NCP) statement read that the recognition of self-declared acting president Juan Guaido by US and other states is ‘unacceptable intrusion’ in internal affairs and an attempt of ‘imperialist coup’.
The statement – the diplomatic blunder of Nepal siding with Russia-China group against Nepal's position of non-aligned – followed the stand taken by China, Russia and a number of other countries, who have criticised the role of the US and its allies on Venezuela’s political crisis.
The letter signed by NCP (NCP) co-chairman Dahal – in absence of the party’s another co-chairman and also the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli – had not triggered a debate over whether it is the official position of the government or the NCP (NCP) only but also raised serious concern from the US. The US has also sought Nepal government's official position in the issue.
Foreign experts claimed that the Dahal statement on Friday was a reaction to the statement issued by around a dozen Kathmandu-based missions including the UN, who asked the government to finalise Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission for the Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP).
On Thursday, issuing a press note Kathmandu-based diplomatic missions of Australia, Germany, European Union, Finland, France, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States of America, and United Nations said, "Noting the looming expiration of the mandates of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission for the Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons, as well as the upcoming fourth anniversary of the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed certain requirements for transitional justice processes, we encourage the government to clarify to the public its plans to take the transitional justice process forward in 2019."
Though, Nepal has extended diplomatic relations with 163 countries around the world, it has not been in any group historically. Nepal and Venezuela had tied the bilateral relations on April 28, 1987.

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