United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks to the media personnel as Nepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as Prachanda, listens to him outside the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers at Singha Durbar in Kathmandu, Nepal October 29, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called on Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ after arriving here on first official visit to the Himalayan nation.

Mr. Guterres also held separate meetings with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Purna Bahadur Khadka and Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud.

In a post on X, Nepal’s Prime Minister’s office said a meeting was held between PM Prachanda and Mr. Guterres, who is here on an official visit to Nepal at the friendly invitation of the Prime Minister.

Mr. Guterres said that the transitional justice process in Nepal that the government is trying to conclude must help bring peace to victims, families and communities.

Addressing the media after meeting Prime Minister Prachanda, the U.N. chief pledged the world body’s support to Nepal to develop a process that meets international standards, the Supreme Court’s rulings, and the needs of victims — and to put it into practice, My Republica newspaper reported.

In a joint press briefing with Prime Minister Prachanda, the U.N. chief urged developed countries to increase support to countries like Nepal that are hard-hit by the impacts of climate change.

“Nepal is also caught in a blizzard of global crises not of its making: the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation, and the enormous threat posed by climate chaos,” he said.

He said that much more international action is needed. The developed countries must step up to support sustainable development, and help developing economies, including Nepal, to tackle the climate crisis, he said.

Mr. Guterres arrived here in the wee hours of Sunday on a four-day official visit. He was received by Foreign Minister Saud and senior Foreign Ministry officials at the Tribhuvan International Airport.

The U.N. chief was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the airport, said a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry.

The U.N. chief 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 U.N. Headquarters in New York and the United Nations country team in Nepal.

Mr. Guterres, who is visiting Nepal for the first time after assuming the U.N. Secretary-General post in 2017, will discuss with Nepal’s top leadership the matters relating to the peace process, sustainable development and climate change with Nepali authorities, the foreign ministry said earlier.

Starting in 2006, the peace process for inclusion of Maoist rebels in mainstream politics, issues relating to the implementation of transitional justice mechanism and truth and reconciliation commission, remains incomplete.

Mr. Guterres is scheduled to meet President Ramchandra Paudel later on Sunday.

The Secretary-General will have separate meetings with Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) (CPN-UML) Chairperson K.P. Sharma Oli.

He will also visit the Patan Durbar Square, a heritage site of historical and archaeological significance.

PM Prachanda will host a banquet reception on Sunday evening in honour of the Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General will also visit famous tourist destinations Namche, Pokhara, Annapurna Base Camp and Buddha’s birthplace Lumbini on Monday.

He would address a joint session of Nepal’s Parliament on Tuesday.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar meets António Guterres, U.N. Secretary General on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session, in New York on September 26, 2023
| Photo Credit: ANI

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with the top U.N. leadership here and discussed India’s G20 Presidency, regional issues and global challenges, sustainable development goals and Security Council reforms.

A day before he addresses the General Debate at the ongoing high-level United Nations General Assembly session, Mr. Jaishankar met with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and President of the 78th session of the General Assembly Dennis Francis on Monday at the headquarters of the world organisation.

He also met with the United Nations Development Programme Administrator Achim Steiner.

Mr. Jaishankar said it was a “pleasure” to meet with Mr. Guterres and that he discussed “how India’s G20 Presidency has contributed to strengthening” the U.N.’s sustainable development agenda.

“We have coordinated closely in this regard over the last year,” Mr. Jaishankar wrote on X, adding that he appreciated Mr. Guterres’ strong commitment to reforming international financial institutions.

In a readout of the meeting issued by the U.N. spokesperson’s office, Mr. Guterres “expressed appreciation for India’s cooperation with the U.N. and its leadership of the G20”.

Mr. Guterres and Mr. Jaishankar also “discussed the situations in Afghanistan, Myanmar, and other global challenges”, according to the readout.

The U.N. secretary-general attended the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi on September 9 and 10 held under India’s Presidency of the grouping.

Before his meeting with Mr. Guterres, Mr. Jaishankar met Mr. Francis and welcomed his appreciation of the outcomes of India’s G20 Presidency.

“Confident that it would contribute to the U.N. General Assembly’s discourse and deliberations. Agreed on the importance of reforming multilateralism and giving the Global South its due on crucial issues of our times,” Mr. Jaishankar said.

In a post on ‘X’, Mr. Francis said he was “delighted” to meet Mr. Jaishankar and congratulated him on India’s “successful G20 Chairmanship, especially on India’s unwavering advocacy in support of the Global South”.

Mr. Francis added that he discussed priorities and key issues of the 78th UNGA session, including UNSC reforms and building on the outcomes of the Sustainable Development Goals Summit held during the high-level week ahead of the Summit of the Future to be held in 2024.

Mr. Jaishankar also thanked Mr. Francis for his presence at the special ‘India-UN for Global South: Delivering for Development’ side event. The minister hosted the event in New York on Saturday.

In his meeting with Mr. Steiner, Mr. Jaishankar appreciated the UNDP’s engagement with India’s G20 Presidency initiatives. “Can work together to scale up Indian success stories for global benefit,” he said.

Mr. Jaishankar also met with the Foreign Minister of the UAE Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in New York.

“Always a pleasure to meet FM @ABZayed of UAE, this time in New York. Appreciate the rapid progress in our bilateral cooperation. Value our regular exchange of perspectives on regional and global issues,” he posted on ‘X’ later.

The external affairs minister said he had a “warm meeting with our SAGAR partner”, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Madagascar Yvette Sylla.

“Discussed development partnership, millets and rice production, digital delivery and defence cooperation,” he tweeted.