'People's aspiration must be met to sustain democracy'

 Kathmandu, Mar. 13

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr. Narayan Khadka, has said that people's aspirations must be met in order to sustain democratic governance.

Addressing a panel on 'Democratic Governance and Security' during his visit of Turkey to participate in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on Sunday, he underlined that 'democracy is the best guarantor of security', informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement.

He shared his perspectives on the role of democratic governance in creating a peaceful, stable and prosperous society while highlighting Nepal's journey through struggles in the institutionalisation of today's inclusive democracy.

On the sidelines of the Forum, Minister Dr. Khadka continued his high-level engagements. He met with Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri.

Minister Al Marri said that his government accorded priority to countries like Nepal for trade, investment and other areas of cooperation and requested for a list of feasible investment projects in Nepal. Minister Dr. Khadka appreciated the the UAE for its continued goodwill and support.

Kairat Sarybay, Secretary-General of Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), paid a courtesy call on the Minister on the sidelines. During the meeting, Sarybay briefed about the organisation's activities in promoting multilateralism and connectivity in the region.  

Earlier, Dr. Khadka attended a reception hosted by the President of Turkey in honour of the visiting delegates.

Previously, he had held meeting with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu where they agreed to further expand the opportunities of bilateral trade and investment between the two nations. According to MoFA, Cavusoglu had expressed commitment to enhancing productive partnership in mutually beneficial areas.

Likewise, on the sidelines, FM Dr. Khadka held meeting with his Bahraini counterpart Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani. He appreciated Bahrain for safeguarding the interest of Nepali migrant workers there.

 Over 50 foreign ministers together with a cross-section of policy makers and experts are attending the event. The theme for this year’s annual Forum was ‘Recoding Diplomacy’.

The FM left for Kathmandu in the evening on Sunday.

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 14 March 2022.