Kathmandu, August 27
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli says members of regional organisations such as Saarc and BIMSTEC could not make the groups active.
PM Oli, who was talking to editors of major media outlets in the country on Monday, said that Nepal should make the most of the BIMSTEC grouping as it could not help re-vitalise the South Asian grouping.
Oli’s comments come as Kathmandu prepares to host the heads of government of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Sri Lanka Thailand and Myanmar for the BIMSTEC Summit. “BIMSTEC cannot work the way it has worked in the last 20 years,” said the Prime Minister adding that it was time the grouping took momentum.
He indicated that BIMSTEC cannot replace Saarc as Nepal was one of the founding members of the grouping. “We haven’t been able to revitalise Saarc. It could not happen with our lone efforts. During my visit to India–even during Modiji’s visit to Nepal– I have been been saying that we need to revitalise Saarc.”
PM Oli told the editors that Nepal’s priority in BIMSTEC is related to regional connectivity.
