UN Secretary General Guterres meets Prime Minister Dahal, Foreign Minister Saud

 Nepal: Visiting United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Sunday.

                                                            photo: TKP

Prior to the meeting, Chief Secretary Baikuntha Aryal and Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal welcomed the UN Secretary General to the Singha Durbar-based Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers.

Before this, the UN Secretary General held a separate meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Purna Bahadur Khadka and Minister for Foreign Affairs NP Saud.

Guterres arrived in Kathmandu in the wee hours of Sunday on a four-day official visit at the invitation of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

He was received and welcomed by Foreign Minister NP Saud and senior foreign ministry officials at the Tribhuvan International Airport. The Secretary-General was also accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Tribhuvan International Airport, said a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Secretary General Guterres is accompanied by Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean Pierre Lacroix, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations to Nepal Hanaa Singer-Hamdy and other officials from the UN Headquarters in New York and the United Nations country team in Nepal, according to the statement.

Guterres arrived in Kathmandu amid the Israel–Hamas war and just one day after the United Nations adopted a non–binding resolution for a truce in the war.

It’s his second visit to Nepal. Guterres, in the capacity of UN refugee chief, visited Nepal in 2007 and took stock of the situation of the Bhutanese refugees living in eastern Nepal.

After meeting the prime minister, Guterres will leave for the International Convention Centre, New Baneshwar where he will meet former prime minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Guterres, will then meet former prime minister and UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli.

As per the itinerary, he will reach the Office of the President and call on President Ramchandra Paudel at 4 pm and will leave for Patan Durbar Square for a heritage walk.

In the evening, the UN secretary general will attend a dinner reception hosted by Prime Minister Dahal at Hotel Soaltee.

On Monday early morning, Guterres will depart for the Everest region by a Nepal Army helicopter subject to the weather conditions. If the weather permits to fly, the UN chief will reach Hotel Everest View around the Everest region and then he will speak to residents about the impacts of climate change on their daily livelihood.

After completing his engagements in the Everest region, he will hold a meeting with the UN Country Team in Nepal on Monday afternoon before departing to Pokhara.