Nepal signs nukes ban treaty

Published On: September 22, 2017 01:19 AM NPT


KATHMANDU, Sept 22: Nepal has signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on Thursday.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara signed the treaty amid a ceremony at the UN Headquarters in New York on Wednesday. After its ratification by parliament, Nepal will become a party to the treaty.

According to a press statement issued by Nepal's permanent mission to the UN in New York, Minister Mahara attended several functions on Wednesday. 

Minister Mahara attended the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Ministerial Meeting which was organized on the theme of “Unilateral Coercive Measures, in violation of International Law and the Human Rights”. Highlighting Nepal's principled position of non-alignment, he called for the application of peaceful means for resolving all differences.

Minister Mahara also attended the 16th Annual Ministerial Meeting of the Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) which was organized on the theme of “Accelerating the implementation of the Vienna Programme of Action and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”. Mahara said that international support measures, not just Official Development Assistance (ODA) but also partnerships, technology transfers and investments, need to be increased to ensure meaningful participation of LLDCs in global value chains and international trade, according to the statement.

Likewise, addressing the High-level Open Debate on Reform of UN Peacekeeping organized by the UN Security Council, Minister Mahara called for ensuring the safety and security of the peacekeepers to enable them to effectively carry out the mandate of protection of civilians. He also reiterated the commitment of Nepal, which is currently the sixth largest troops and police contributing country, to support reforms in peace operations. 

Separately, Minister Mahara attended the High-level event on 'SDG Implementation, Financing and Monitoring; Sharing Innovations through South-South and Triangular Cooperation' organized earlier in the morning by Bangladesh. Minister Mahara said that enhanced south-south cooperation, especially sharing of innovation, can play a crucial role to implement the transformative 2030 Agenda. 

Also on Monday, Nepal and Niger established diplomatic relations. With this the number of countries with which Nepal has established diplomatic relations has now reached 151. 

PM Deuba reaches New York
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba reached New York Wednesday, leading the Nepali delegation to the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The Prime Minister is scheduled to address the UNGA on September 23. He is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with several counterparts on the sidelines.


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