NepalRelations with the United States
United States Agency for International Development mission,
located in the Rabi Bhavan complex, an old Rana palace in Kalimati Durbar,
Kathmandu
Courtesy John N. Gunning
Nepal's relations with the United States were cordial.
Diplomatic relations at the legation level were
established in
1947. Commercial relations were conducted according to the
mostfavored -nation status. In August 1951, the two governments
agreed
to raise the status of their respective diplomatic
representations
to the rank of ambassador. It was not until August 1959,
however,
that each country established a resident embassy in each
other's
capital. The first agreement for United States economic
assistance
was signed in January 1951. By 1990 the United States
commitment
totaled approximately US$475 million.
In the late 1980s, United States economic assistance
channeled
through the Agency for International Development averaged
US$15
million annually. The United States also contributed to
Nepal's
development through various multilateral institutions,
businesses,
and private voluntary organizations such as CARE, Save the
Children
Federation, United Mission to Nepal, Seventh Day
Adventists, the
Coca-Cola Corporation, and Morrison Knudsen Corporation.
Much of
Washington's economic assistance has been in the fields of
health
and family planning, environmental protection, and rural
development. Projects have included geological surveys,
road
construction, agricultural development, and educational
programs.
The Peace Corps began operating in 1962 in Nepal, and in
1991 it
was the only such program still operational in South Asia.
The
Peace Corps concentrated on agricultural, health,
education, and
rural development programs.
United States policy toward Nepal supported three
objectives--
peace and stability in South Asia, Nepal's independence
and
territorial integrity, and selected programs of economic
and
technical assistance to assist development. At the
beginning of the
Cold War, the United States also had a significant
strategic
interest in the country because Nepal was an outpost and a
portal
into China.
Although Kathmandu's primary interest in relations with
Washington was for economic and technical assistance,
Nepal also
sought global support for its sovereignty and territorial
integrity. While on a state visit to the United States in
December
1983, King Birendra received President Ronald Reagan's
endorsement
of Nepal as a zone of peace.
During Nepal's prodemocracy movement, the United States
Department of State voiced concern at the violent turn of
events in
February 1990 and urged the government to start a dialogue
with the
democratic forces in order to stop violence and
repression.
Congressman Stephen Solarz, Chairman of the House of
Representatives Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and
the
Pacific, and his colleagues twice visited Nepal and met
with the
king and a wide range of political leaders undoubtedly to
discuss
events relating to the prodemocracy movement. The United
Statesbased Asia Watch human rights monitoring group published a
detailed
account of torture, repression, and inhumane treatment
meted out to
the detainees.
Data as of September 1991
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