Statement by Hon. Mr. Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal at the 19th Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Member States of Asia Cooperation Dialogue
24 June 2024 (Tehran, Iran)
His Excellency Mr. Ali Bagheri,
Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Islamic Republic of Iran and Chair of this Meeting
Dear friends from fellow Member States,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen!
I bring with me the greetings and best wishes of the Government and people of Nepal as well as message of peace from the birthplace of Buddha for the success of this Dialogue.
I feel deeply honoured and privileged to attend the 19th Meeting of Foreign Ministers of Member States of Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) in this beautiful and culturally rich city of Tehran. I assure you of my delegation’s full support for the success of this Meeting.
At the outset, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Government and people of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the warm hospitality as well as for the outstanding arrangements made for this Dialogue.
I join with the previous speakers to convey my sincere condolences, on behalf of the Government and people of Nepal as well as on my own, on the unfortunate passing of former President His Excellency Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, former Foreign Minister His Excellency Hossein Amir-Abdollahian of Iran, and other high officials in a tragic incident last month, to the Government and people of Iran, including their bereaved families.
Mr. Chair,
Nepal commends the role of Iran for steering the ACD process with renewed commitments and long-term vision. We also welcome the proposal of the Kingdom of Thailand to lead our ACD Forum for the year 2025 and also acknowledge the milestones achieved during the stewardship by past ACD Chairs.
Nepal extends her appreciation to the State of Qatar for its readiness to host the 3rd ACD Summit in coming October.
Excellencies
Dialogue and discourse play a prominent role in broadening mutual understanding and unravelling truths about ourselves and the constantly evolving world we inhabit.
Recognizing the paramount value of ideas and meaningful intercourses, ACD was conceived twenty-two years ago as Asia-wide forum for discussions on relevant issues impacting our region and beyond.
I firmly believe that our collective vision, unity, solidarity and mutual collaboration are key in uniting us all as a pan-Asian community.
It has been widely acclaimed that the 21st century is Asian century. Our nations and people now have improved access to information, markets, resources, human capital, and state-of-the-art technologies. The growth trajectories of Asian economies are impressive and demonstrate promises for the future.
These advancements have played a crucial role in our collective journey towards integration, development and prosperity in Asia. However, as our region continues to progress, the need for an inclusive, equitable, sustainable, resilient and people-centric development approach has become more pronounced than ever.
Likewise, the negative impacts of climate change, global economic recession and rising conflicts and geopolitical rivalries have exposed the existing fault lines and disparities in our governance system and development strategies. Furthermore, maintaining peace and security remains a pressing issue across the regions. These circumstances call for enhanced regional cooperation that is more vibrant, results-focused, and dynamic.
Distinguished Delegates,
Today, at this important gathering, I would like to reiterate Nepal’s unwavering faith and commitment to regional cooperation and multilateralism.
Nepal joined the ACD in 2016 and has since attached great importance to this regional forum. We are of the view that ACD provides a unique platform for candid and open dialogues on various issues and concerns of our region.
In this context, our concerted efforts should focus on enhanced trade and commerce; joint tourism corridors, increased investment; seamless connectivity; scientific and technological innovation, technology transfer; energy and food security; human capital development; robust climate action; sustainable use of natural resources; and deeper people-to-people linkages, among others.
The enhanced regional engagements in these diverse areas of cooperation are crucial for achieving our shared objectives of growth, sustainability and prosperity including realization of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Nepal remains committed to realizing the goals of ACD vision 2030 and implementing ACD Blueprint 2021-2030 for common benefits of our peoples and countries.
Let us leverage our resources, synergies and partnerships for a shared cause: a peaceful, resilient and prosperous Asia.
I thank you for your kind attention.
