Kathmandu, Aug 29 – Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has said that the SAARC and BIMSTEC have not been formed as an alternative to one another. “There are many commonalities and challenges in both SAARC and BIMSTEC and both the organizations focus on ending poverty, building prosperous societies and enhancing mutual cooperation in the region,” he said.
In an interview to state-owned Nepal Television on the eve of the 4th Summit of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation or BIMSTEC this evening, he said even though the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) has not been able to move ahead speedily, its need and rationale in the present context is higher.
As chair of SAARC, Nepal has been making every possible diplomatic effort to hold the SAARC summit. “Any misunderstanding in this regard needs to be transformed into an understanding, with efforts from the host nation Pakistan as well.”
He also shared that the 4th summit to be held on Thursday and Friday was being held with preparation for the shortest possible time in the history of BIMSTEC, and within a month after full agreement of all the member states.
