Nepal’s new agreements in March 2019 began with a defense deal on March 01, 2019 involving US and Poland, and then followed two MoUs on satellite project and security printing system with France.

As part of the defense deal, the US Government contracted with a renowned Polish aircraft manufacturer Polskie Zaklady Lotnicze for the supply of two new M28 Skytruck aircraft to Nepal.

The USD 18.9 million defense deal is termed as ‘Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contract.

Polskie Zaklady Lotnicze (PZL) M28 Aircraft

 “This contract involves foreign military financing to Nepal. This award is the result of a country-directed sole-source acquisition. Foreign military financing funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award,” the US Defense Department said in a statement.

The deal package involves a ferry flight to Kathmandu along with training & technical publications.

Under the agreement, the US Government has come forward with a financial backing of USD 19 million for a pair of Mielec M28 Block 50 utility transports to be delivered to Nepal.

As per the contract, the project at Mielec will be completed by December 2019.

Nepal, Third M28 Operator in Asia-Pacific

As per the records, Nepal has one M28 aircraft currently that is of 16 years old. Besides, the country had also operated two such models in the past, one of which crashed on May 30, 2017.

There are 76 M28s in service with 16 operators, globally, and Nepal stands among the three Asia-Pacific operators including Vietnamese Air Force and the Indonesian Police, which are currently using one each.

Stay tuned for more such interesting Nepal’s World News Headlines!

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With Israel
In a move enhancing the domestic energy sector, Nepal took another step that would foster its energy cooperation with Israel.

In a recent discussion, Nepal and Israel discussed ways to boost bilateral ties between the two nations, especially in the energy sector.

In a discussion with the Israeli Ambassador to Nepal Benny Omer, Nepal Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Barshaman Pun urged the former to push for Israeli investment in Nepal’s energy sector, informed Pun’s Secretariat.

“There’s demand of 10,000MW of electricity for Nepal in 10 years. We have a favorable investment climate in Nepal for investors in the energy sector. Thus, I urge the Israeli investors to consider investment in this sector,” Pun reportedly said in a statement.

In response, the Israeli Ambassador expressed Israeli Government’s willingness to invest in Nepali energy and irrigation sectors.

Reiterating his support in this regard, Omar informed that Israel has already begun quest to find interested stakeholders who could invest in the Nepali energy sector.

With Bangladesh
Meanwhile, Nepal is also gearing up for a similar cooperation with Bangladesh.

According to a recent update, Nepali Ministry for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation is planning to conclude an energy pact with Bangladesh during Bangla’s Power Minister Nasrul Hamid’s upcoming visit to Nepal.

The Bangladeshi minister is scheduled to embark on a three-day state visit to Nepal from August 9, 2018.

As the sources say, both the sides are expected to sign a MoU in this regard to form a high-level bilateral mechanism for electricity trade between the two countries and for inviting Bangladeshi investment in Nepali hydropower projects. 

It has been some time since a high-level discussion was held between the two countries regarding energy trade and investment. If the joint mechanism is formed, it will be a wonderful platform to turn the discussion into reality, reads a statement.

Both the sides have also agreed to establish secretary and joint secretary-level mechanisms in this regard.

With Myanmar
Very recently on July 31, 2018, Nepal signed another deal with Myanmar that would enhance Nepal-Myanmar bilateral ties.

At the Foreign Ministry level, both the sides signed a MoU for the establishment of the Bilateral Consultation Mechanism and exemption of visa requirements for the holders of diplomatic and official (special) passports.

Nepal Joint Secretary at the Foreign Ministry Tapas Adhikari and Myanmar Ambassador to Nepal Thiri Pyanchi U Tun Nay signed an agreement in this regard on behalf of both the nations.

During the meeting, Nepali Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi and his counterpart U Myint Thu
also reviewed other key matters pertaining to bilateral relations and ways to take them further, reads an official statement.

Also Read: 

• Oli India Visit 2018: India, Nepal Strengthen Ties, Target Next-level Development
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• Nepal, Benin Establish Diplomatic Ties
• Nepal 2017 Highlights: Politics and Bilateral Relations

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