Kathmandu, Sept. 28
Minister for Foreign Affairs Pradeep Gyawali on
Friday said that the most vulnerable countries were hit hardest by the impacts
of climate change despite their negligible emissions.
“Although they have very less emissions, they face
the consequences which are not just disproportionate but also unjust and undue,”
he said while addressing the 74th session of the United Nations
General Assembly (UNGA) ongoing in New York.
Highlighting
that Nepal lies in the hotspot of climate change, the Minister said that the
Himalayas would see melting away of one third of the glaciers and drying up of
fresh water in an unprecedented pace.
He informed the
Assembly about the government’s decision to convene a global dialogue, namely,
‘Sagarmatha Dialogue’, to deliberate on critical issues facing the world,
including climate change.
Minister Gywali expressed
Nepal’s abiding trust in multilateralism, adding that ‘only alternative to it
is a better, effective, inclusive and responsive multilateralism’, read a
statement issued by Nepali Mission in the New York.
He further added
that the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was a ‘display
of inclusive multilateralism at its best’.
He stressed the
need of similar spirit for implementing global agendas.
Sharing Nepal’s
principled positions on peace, security, disarmament, sustainable development,
human rights among others, FM Gyawali underlined Nepal’s belief in peaceful
settlement of conflicts and disputes through negotiations and dialogues, and
without external interferences.
He reiterated
that Nepal commitment to universal values of human rights is total. Similarly,
touching upon that fact that Nepal has rendered one of the most dedicated,
reliable and professional services to UN peacekeeping over the last six
decades, the Minister highlighted the importance of safety, security and
dignity of peacekeepers as well as predictable, adequate and sustained
resources for peace operations.
FM Gyawali further
said that building on the historic political transformation, Nepal was now
focused on economic agenda to sustain political gains under an overarching
national aspiration of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali'.
Stress
on Pan-Asian cooperation
Speaking at the informal Ministerial Meeting of Asia
Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) organised on the sidelines of the UNGA, Minister
Gyawali stressed on a pan-Asian cooperation for common benefit.
“The region could benefit immensely from the use of
the local and regional potentials,” he said.
He highlighted the
importance of pan-Asian cooperation for common benefit, taking into account the
strength of the region in terms of increasing economic growth rates, sound
knowledge base, development of modern technology, abundance of natural and
human resources, and civilizational and cultural richness.
However, Minister Gyawali maintained that the
countries in Asia can be benefitted from the use of these potentials through
strong bonds of friendship, cooperation and partnership.
“Concrete activities should be carried out to offer
tangible results to the people of Asian region,” he said.
Likewise, on the sidelines, FM Gyawali attended the
annual ministerial meeting of the Group of
77 and China.
He also held
separate bilateral meetings with Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Minister of
Foreign Affairs of Oman; Tandi Dorji, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bhutan;
and José Pacheco, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation
of Mozambique.
During these
meetings, various matters of bilateral relations, including more cooperation in
both bilateral front as well as multilateral forums, were discussed, read the
statement.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 29 September 2019.
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