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DPM Thapa discusses EU-India statement with EU envoys



Kathmandu: April 05: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Kamal Thapa on Tuesday invited ambassadors of various European nations including the European Union Ambassador to Nepal, Rensje Teerink, to discuss the EU-India joint statement on Nepal.

A source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Thapa had invited the diplomats at the Ministry and asked why the EU agreed to issue a statement against Nepal’s Constitution. Teerink, however, clarified that the European nations were not against the Nepali Constitution.

An EU-India joint statement issued, after the 13th European Union-India Summit in Brussels, had stated the need for “a lasting and inclusive constitutional settlement in Nepal that will address the remaining Constitutional issues in a time bound manner, and promote political stability and economic growth”, on Wednesday.

In response to the statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) had strongly objected the comment made over Nepal’s constitution and stated that it was a matter of internal affairs, on Thursday.

“Against this backdrop, the EU-India Joint Statement not only hurts the sentiments of the people of Nepal but also defies the fundamental principle of non-interference in internal affairs of a country in breach of UN Charter and norms of international law,” the statement added.

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