Prime Minister Balen Shah Prepares to Meet Envoys Individually Amidst Criticism

Kathmandu. Prime Minister Balendra (Balen) Shah, who has been facing criticism for not meeting diplomatic mission representatives, is preparing to meet the ambassadors and representatives of various countries in Nepal individually.

According to a source from the Prime Minister's secretariat, preparations are underway to meet the ambassadors of various countries in Nepal. The source indicated that work is being done to create a schedule for this.

In the first phase, the meeting is scheduled with the Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Naveen Srivastava, followed by the Chinese Ambassador, Chang Mao Ming. However, the source claimed that the time for the meeting has not yet been set.

According to the source, there are plans to meet other ambassadors afterward. Criticism had been mounting that the Prime Minister was not meeting foreign ambassadors and mission officials. After being appointed Prime Minister on Chaitra 13, Balen held a joint meeting with ambassadors from various countries on Chaitra 25.

During that meeting, ambassadors from various countries congratulated and wished Balen success on his appointment as Prime Minister. On that occasion, the Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amrit Bahadur Rai, briefed the ambassadors about Nepal's foreign policy.

After that, on Jestha 12, Prime Minister Balen met jointly with the ambassadors and heads of diplomatic missions of European Union member states in Kathmandu and New Delhi. The ambassadors of the European Union, who came to Nepal to attend the annual meeting of resident ambassadors in Kathmandu and non-resident ambassadors and mission heads in New Delhi, expressed their desire to meet Prime Minister Balen, leading to the joint meeting.

Following Balen's appointment as Prime Minister, there were repeated high-level visits from the United States and China, but Prime Minister Balen had refused to meet any of them. From Baishakh 7-9, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs at the US Department of State, Sameer Paul Kapoor, visited Nepal.

Subsequently, from Baishakh 17 to 19, the US President's Special Envoy for South and Central Asia and US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, also visited Nepal. Following that, from Jestha 16, US diplomat and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs, Sarah B. Rogers, visited Nepal. All three had proposed to meet Prime Minister Balen, but no meeting took place.

On Asar 23, Yan Dong, a leader of the Chinese Communist Party and China's Deputy Minister of Commerce, arrived for a four-day visit to Nepal. Prior to that, there had been various visits from China. Prime Minister Balen did not meet any of them. After Prime Minister Balen did not give time for a meeting, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri postponed his proposed visit to Nepal. Recently, Indian Ministry of External Affairs Additional Secretary, Mundu Mahawar, visited Nepal and returned. While foreign political and diplomatic representatives visiting Nepal recently have met with Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle and Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal, they have not been able to meet the Prime Minister.