Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Rana returns home

Kathmandu, Dec 23: Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba has returned home this evening after concluding her almost two-week-long visit to some countries in Europe and India.

Talking to the media persons at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) upon her arrival this evening, Dr. Rana shared that she held crucial meetings in Europe. In the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Minister Dr. Rana presented the basis of Nepal’s advocacy for climate justice. Minister Dr. Rana had left here for Europe on December 7.

It is said that the main objective of Minister Dr. Rana’s visit was to make a presentation on behalf of Nepal about the climate change impacts and to push for compensation. Minister Dr. Rana said that Nepal advocated for climate justice for the first time in the International Court of Justice, sharing the present status of climate change and its impacts on Nepal.

She also held meetings with her counterparts from Luxembourg and Belgium and discussed issues of mutual interest. Foreign Minister Dr. Rana and her delegation visited the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ), Potsdam, Germany, on December 16 and had a meeting with Prof. Dr. Niels Hovius, Head of Geomorphology, and Dr. Ludwig Stronik, Head of Projects and International Affairs, and discussed a nationwide landslide warning system for geotechnical emergencies and risk reduction in Nepal.

In Potsdam, she asked the scientists and researchers to do more research work about the climate change impacts in Nepal’s mountainous areas. On December 17, she attended the conference where she spoke at the panel on ‘Pathways to LGBTQI+ Inclusion in National Laws and Policies.’.

During the session, the foreign minister shared views on the inclusion and human rights of minority groups, particularly LGBTQI+ persons in Nepal. She also highlighted the relevant national provisions and their impact on the LGBTIQ+ community, discussing how these developments might inspire other countries. Minister Dr. Rana landed in New Delhi on Friday and addressed the Indo-Nepal Economic Conference and urged India to open additional air routes, highlighting the potential to boost tourism and strengthen bilateral connectivity.

She said that Nepal was seeking support from India to help run Gautam Buddha Airport and Pokhara Airport and also asked private Indian airline operators to start services to these two airports. Responding to a query from journalists, Minister Dr. Rana said that her visit to India was to attend the economic conference and for the follow-up for her health care and shared that no political meeting or talk was held. —RSS