Parliamentary hearing for four ambassador nominees held

KATHMANDU: The Parliamentary Hearing Committee on Monday conducted hearings for the proposed ambassadors to Israel, Malaysia, Pakistan and Portugal.

The cabinet meeting held on July 30 nominated 17 ambassadors for various countries. Of them, the committee held hearings for Prof Dhan Prasad Pandit (Israel), Dr Netra Prasad Timilsina (Malaysia), Rita Dhital (Pakistan) and Prakash Mani Paudel (Portugal).

Prof Dhan Prasad Pandit, who has been nominated for the vacant ambassadorial position in Israel, told the committee that Nepal’s stance has been to seek a just, sustainable and peaceful resolution to the political issues in the Middle East since Israel’s establishment. “Political, economic, educational, cultural and people-to-people relations between Nepal and Israel have been strengthening. This has positively impacted tourism, commerce, and trade promotion between the two countries,” he added.

Likewise, Dr Netra Prasad Timilsina, who has been recommended for Malaysia, emphasized the deep bilateral relations between Nepal and Malaysia. “The memory of Gorkha soldiers fighting for Malaysia during external and internal conflicts in the last century remains fresh among the people of Malaysia. The descendants of those soldiers now form a large Nepali community in Malaysia. There is significant potential to attract Malaysian tourists to Nepal,” he added.

Similarly, Rita Dhital, who has been recommended for Pakistan, acknowledged Pakistan’s continued goodwill towards Nepal’s political, economic, social and cultural development as a close neighbor. “The exchange of high-level bilateral visits has strengthened the relations between the two countries,” she added.

Prakash Mani Paudel, who has been recommended for Portugal, said he intends to make the bilateral consultation mechanism between Nepal and Portugal more active. “My focus will be on facilitating high-level political visits from Portugal which has recently become an important labor destination for Nepal,” he added.

The committee has already conducted hearings for the proposed ambassadors to India, China, Germany and Denmark.