Kathmandu, Nepal, March 28, 2019: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has urged the Nepal government to be a part of the Indo-Pacific strategy unveiled by the US to ensure free and open Indo-Pacific region claiming that the strategy is in the interest of Nepal.
The US has made such an urge while sending a congratulatory message to the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on the completion of the first anniversary of assuming office as prime minister. In the message US Secretary of State Pompeo has also urged Nepal to uphold the rights of Tibetan refugees in Nepal.
Nepal would continue to protect the rights of Tibetans in Nepal to ensure that individuals will not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or their religious, cultural, and linguistic freedoms, reads the message sent by the Pompeo.
As sending congratulatory message to Nepali prime minister on the anniversary of the assumption of office by the US with suggestions is rare incident, some critics have describe this as an indication of the US attaching further importance to its relations with Nepal.
As Nepal strives to realize the fruits of peace and political stability, I believe it will become increasingly apparent that the US emphasis on a free and open Indo-Pacific region, providing for the prosperity, sovereignty, and security of every country, is very much in Nepal’s own interest, he further states in the message.
My meeting with Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali consolidated some important commitments, including the paramount importance of ensuring the $500 million Millennium Challenge Corporation Compact moves forward according to the agreed-upon principles, he stated. Foreign Minister Gyawali had held bilateral meeting with Pompeo in December 2018.
