As a U.N. mission overseeing Nepal’s transition to peace prepares to wind up, the U.S. has appealed to the political leadership in the country to respect their own commitment and bring the peace process to “a much-needed conclusion”
Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Robert Blake, made separate telephone calls to the Nepalese Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and the chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal Pushpa Kamal Dahal, popularly known as Prachanda.
“He (Blake) told both leaders that the United States government commitment to support the peace process will continue after the United Nations mission leaves Nepal this weekend,” State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters at his daily news conference.
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“He urged all parties to continue to respect their own commitments under the comprehensive peace agreement,” Mr. Crowley said.
The U.N. mission in Nepal was set up in 2007 with a one-year mandate to oversee the country’s transition to peace.
It was repeatedly extended, but in September the United Nations announced the mission would close on January 15.
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Blake concluded by saying that the people of Nepal look to their political leadership to bring the peace process to “a much-needed conclusion.” He appealed to all parties to show flexibility and work together to achieve this goal, Mr. Crowley said.
The U.S., in a travel warning earlier, had alerted citizens about the security risk on travelling to Nepal in view of the volatile security situation in the country.
It also said that Prachanda-led Communist Party is considered to be a global terrorist organisation and thus it would be unlawful to maintain any kind of relationship with them.
“The U.S. government’s designation of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) as a ‘Specially Designated Global Terrorist’ organisation under Executive Order 13224, and its inclusion on the ‘Terrorist Exclusion List’ pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act, remains in effect,” the State Department had said in a travel alert issued Wednesday.
“These two designations make Maoists excludable from entry into the United States without a waiver and bar U.S. citizens from contributing funds, goods, or services to, or for the benefit of, the Maoists,” it said.