Nepal requests US for COVID-19 vaccines

KATHMANDU, May 24: Minister for Foreign Affairs, Pradeep Kumar Gyawali held a telephone conversation with Wendy Sherman, the Deputy Secretary of State of the United States of America, on Monday morning. 

According to the Foreign Ministry, various matters concerning Nepal-US relations, cooperation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and common international agendas were discussed during the conversation. While expressing satisfaction on the overall state of Nepal-US relations, the two sides agreed to take forward bilateral and multilateral engagements in their mutual interests, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On the occasion, Minister Gyawali conveyed the gratitude of the Government of Nepal to the United States for the generous COVID-related cooperation, which helped scale up the national capacity to address the pandemic. Commending the US leadership in garnering collaborative response against the global pandemic, the Foreign Minister requested the Deputy Secretary of State to accord due priority to Nepal during the distribution of surplus vaccines among the developing nations.

Deputy Secretary Sherman assured that the new US Administration will continue to extend cooperation in Nepal’s socio economic sector, including the recent fight against the pandemic. Appreciating the friendship the two countries have enjoyed over the decades, she hoped that key projects in the pipeline under US cooperation would open up further avenues of prosperity for Nepal.

During the conversation, the two sides shared their commitment to working together for climate action, particularly in the context of Nepal’s plan to hold Sagarmatha Sambaad (Dialogue) in the coming October. They also agreed to accelerate economic partnerships in view of the uphill task of post-COVID recovery, adds the Ministry.