World Desk, AnyTV, Kathmandu
Published by: Harendra Chaudhary
Updated Sat, 19 Feb 2022 07:15 PM IST
Summary
US Ambassador to Nepal Randy Berry met Deuba on Wednesday. He is said to have inquired about the progress made towards parliamentary approval of the MCC agreement. Deuba said on Thursday that the Nepali Congress is committed to keeping the motion for parliamentary approval in the House.
Nepal’s Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba seems to be stuck in a very dire situation. On one hand the ruling coalition led by him appears unwilling to approve a proposal to accept funding from American body Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), but he finds himself in no position to anger the US on the issue. Do it.
In the first meeting of the ruling coalition, no consensus was reached on the issue of parliamentary approval of the agreement to get 500 million dollars in aid from the MCC. According to observers, it was only a matter of relief for the ruling Nepali Congress and Prime Minister Deuba that the leader of the ruling coalition agreed to hold further meetings in this regard.
Steps pulled back under pressure from Maoist Center
Earlier, on Wednesday, Deuba had to change his stand on the matter under pressure from the ruling coalition’s constituent party Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre). On Tuesday, he had made it clear that he had spoken to the Speaker of the House of Representatives (the lower house of parliament) to initiate the process of parliamentary approval of the 2017 agreement with the MCC. But the next day he backtracked.
Maoist Center President Pushpa Kamal Dahal has warned that if the government gives parliamentary approval to the MCC agreement, his party will walk out of the ruling coalition. The coalition, led by Deuba’s Nepali Congress, comprises a total of five parties. Among them the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Socialist) and Rashtriya Jan Morcha are also against taking the help of MCC. That is, three out of five parties are against accepting US aid. Now it has come to the fore that there are deep differences in the Janata Samajwadi Party on this issue as well.
US Ambassador met Deuba
According to a report in the newspaper Kathmandu Post, US Ambassador to Nepal Randy Berry met Deuba on Wednesday. He is said to have inquired about the progress made towards parliamentary approval of the MCC agreement. Deuba said on Thursday that the Nepali Congress was committed to moving the motion for parliamentary approval in the House. He said- ‘The motion may not be passed, but it will have to be placed in the House.’ Deuba also said that the help of MCC is in the interest of Nepal, that is why they are making full efforts to get its approval.
Deuba is said to have once again met former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to get the support of the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (UML) in this matter. For this, they went to Oli’s residence on Thursday. UML President Oli has confirmed the meeting.
The US has clearly said that if the Nepal government does not get the parliamentary approval of the MCC agreement, then it will have an impact on US-Nepal relations. The MCC has set February 28 as the deadline for parliamentary approval. Observers say that due to this American pressure, Deuba is scrambling. But so far there is no sign of success for them.
Expansion
Nepal’s Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba seems to be stuck in a very dire situation. On one hand the ruling coalition led by him appears unwilling to approve a proposal to accept funding from American body Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), but he finds himself in no position to anger the US on the issue. Do it.
In the first meeting of the ruling coalition, no consensus was reached on the issue of parliamentary approval of the agreement to get 500 million dollars in aid from the MCC. According to observers, it was only a matter of relief for the ruling Nepali Congress and Prime Minister Deuba that the leader of the ruling coalition agreed to hold further meetings in this regard.
Steps pulled back under pressure from Maoist Center
Earlier, on Wednesday, Deuba had to change his stand on the matter under pressure from the ruling coalition’s constituent party Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre). On Tuesday, he had made it clear that he had spoken to the Speaker of the House of Representatives (the lower house of parliament) to initiate the process of parliamentary approval of the 2017 agreement with the MCC. But the next day he backtracked.
Maoist Center President Pushpa Kamal Dahal has warned that if the government gives parliamentary approval to the MCC agreement, his party will walk out of the ruling coalition. The coalition, led by Deuba’s Nepali Congress, comprises a total of five parties. Among them the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Socialist) and Rashtriya Jan Morcha are also against taking the help of MCC. That is, three out of five parties are against accepting US aid. Now it has come to the fore that there are deep differences in the Janata Samajwadi Party on this issue as well.
US Ambassador met Deuba
According to a report in the newspaper Kathmandu Post, US Ambassador to Nepal Randy Berry met Deuba on Wednesday. He is said to have inquired about the progress made towards parliamentary approval of the MCC agreement. Deuba said on Thursday that the Nepali Congress was committed to moving the motion for parliamentary approval in the House. He said- ‘The motion may not be passed, but it will have to be placed in the House.’ Deuba also said that the help of MCC is in the interest of Nepal, that is why they are making full efforts to get its approval.
Deuba is said to have once again met former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to get the support of the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (UML) in this matter. For this, they went to Oli’s residence on Thursday. UML President Oli has confirmed the meeting.
The US has clearly said that if the Nepal government does not get the parliamentary approval of the MCC agreement, then it will have an impact on US-Nepal relations. The MCC has set February 28 as the deadline for parliamentary approval. Observers say that due to this American pressure, Deuba is scrambling. But so far there is no sign of success for them.