News, Views From Nepal

YUba Nath Lamsal: - Foreign policy is said to be the extension of domestic policy. Sometimes, it may be otherwise. External events in certain cases may influence country’s domestic policy. In the present globalised and heavily interconnected world, events and developments in the neighbourhood and around the world may alter foreign policy course. The geopolitical contours of the world keep changing and it has changed drastically with the dawn of the 21st century. Accordingly countries especially big powers continuously change their strategy and policy to maintain their dominance and realise their strategic interests. Small and weaker countries, too, are compelled to adjust their policy with the change of international scenario and geopolitical landscape. Thus, foreign policy cannot be a static matter. It is a dynamic pursuit which requires timely adjustment and update depending upon the global context and developments in the neighbourhood. Strategic course If foreign policy and s

Yuba Nath Lamsal: Politics is a virtuous vocation supposed to be dedicated towards the greater good of the citizenry. However, politics, of late, is getting bad name in the eyes of people. Politics has lately emerged as an instrument for personal and partisan benefits. People’s agendas are taking a back seat whereas partisan interests reign the supreme in the domain of politics. Authoritarianism is rising in the world and illiberal trends are dominating even in the established democracies. In the name of election, consents are being manufactured and people’s verdicts being doctored. According to V-Dem Institute’s Democracy Report 2023, ‘advances in global levels of democracy made over the last 35 years have been wiped out’. The report says ‘72 per cent of the world’s population – 5.7 billion people – live in autocracies by 2022 and the decline is most dramatic in the Asia-Pacific region, which is back to levels last recorded in 1978’. The report further states “the world has more

Yuba Nath Lamsal: The multi-front geopolitical tussle between the United States and China has surfaced more forcefully with the Biden Administration seeking to confront Beijing in the technological theater. In a not-so-surprising move, the US House of Representatives, the lower chamber of parliament, overwhelmingly passed a bill on March 14 that may eventually lead to the banning of the Chinese social media application TikTok. ‘The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act’ is yet to take the form of law as it still awaits Senate approval and the president’s endorsement. President Joe Biden has already given a nod to sign once the bill comes to his table. However, the bill’s fate is uncertain as the Senate remains non-committal so far. The bill seeks ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, to sell its shares within six months or face a ban in the United States. TikTok is a powerful social media site with over a billion users worldwide and 170 million in th

Yuba Nath Lamsal: We live in an era of history’s most critical juncture. The heightened geopolitical contestation among great powers has sounded worldwide alarm with fear of escalation of conflicts in various trouble spots. Even a slightest miscalculation may provoke war. Ukraine is the latest example of how a country that fails to read the mood and mind of powerful neighbour lands in trouble. While Ukraine war is fundamentally Vladimir Putin’s making by brazenly invading a small and sovereign neighbour. However, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, too, is partially responsible as he failed to gauze the intention and interest of big and powerful neighbour. Kyiv under Zelenskyy moved too close to the Western security alliance and sought NATO membership, which Russia took as a serious threat to its national security. Zelenskyy’s hyper nationalism and Putin’s ego caused irreparable damage to both the countries. The war has already dragged on to the third year and there is no sign o

Yuba Nath Lamsal Mark Twain has said ‘history does not repeat itself but it often rhymes’. In the history of human civilisation, events have often reoccurred but not in exactly similar fashion. In the international order and geopolitics, history has, so far, not repeated but rhymed. The wheel of history continues to roll with triumphs and tumults. In the course of time since human civilization began, several empires rose and fell. The structure of global order, too, has continued to change and taken different shapes. The unipolar world order that came into being after the collapse of the Soviet Union has now crumbled. The bipolar world order is brewing with China rising almost neck and neck with the United States as a super power. According to Lowy Institute’s Global Diplomacy Index 2024, while United States has ‘edge over China in Americas, Europe and South Asia, China is ahead in Africa, East Asia and the Pacific’. Both these powers are in the race of enlarging their influence

Yuba Nath Lamsal: Even as the quality of democracy continues to erode globally over the last two decades, the number of countries that claim to be democratic are still in majority in the world. The quality of democracy is gradually fading away not because of the constitution, system and institutions but owing to the behaviour and intention of the rulers and political actors. There are certain fundamental elements that are indispensable in a democratic polity. These elements include people’s active participation in the political process, periodic elections, rule of law, freedom of speech, equal rights and opportunities for people irrespective of their economic and social status, among others. It is said that democracy begins with the ballot box. Election is a fundamental element of democracy as it provides the forum for people to participate in the political and democratic process. An election is thus the heart and soul of a democratic system. There can be no democracy without the

Yuba Nath Lamsal: Of late the word ‘democracy’ has been a modern political lingua franca across the world. Democracy, in Abraham Lincoln’s words, is the political system ‘of the people, for the people and by the people’. In other words, democracy is the people’s polity in which representatives govern in the name of people and for the larger interest of the people. In democracy, multiple ideas and views have equal role to play wherein dissenting voice is duly heard and well respected. Rulers and leaders alike in every country try to legitimise their rule in the name of people and claim that their regimes are democratic, irrespective of the form of government and political system they inherit or practice. Even those who rule with iron fist claim to have done so in the name of the people. Democracy is, thus, the most used and abused political terminology in the world. Politics evolves along with the evolution of human civilisation. So is democracy. The nature of politics has changed

Yuba Nath Lamsal is Nepal’s former ambassador to Denmark. A seasoned journalist, Lamsal also served as the Editor-in-Chief of state-run The Rising Nepal Daily. He has also advised CPN (Maoist Center) and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on foreign policy matters. In an interview with Himal Press, Lamsal talked about Nepal-Denmark relations and a range of other issues related to national politics and foreign relations. Excerpts: You are a journalist-turned-diplomat. How was the experience of leading the Nepali mission in Denmark? You are correct. I worked as a journalist for over three decades. Even when I was a journalist, politics, foreign policy, and diplomacy were the fields of my interest. Although I was not a practicing or career diplomat, I had been closely watching foreign policy, international issues, and diplomatic activities. I have widely covered foreign policy issues and written many articles on foreign policy, diplomacy, and international relations, which were published

Yuba Nath Lamsal: The 19th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) concluded recently in Kampala, capital of Uganda. In the conference held from January 15 to 20, leaders and participants of different member states reviewed the global state of affairs since the 18th NAM Summit and also discussed the role and relevance of the Non-aligned Movement in the present geopolitical context. Nepal’s participation in the 19th NAM Summit was at the highest level with Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ leading the delegation. Addressing the 19th NAM summit, Prime Minister Prachanda laid special emphasis on the need for enhancing and expanding the role of non-aligned movement in the present global state of affairs. According to Prachanda, NAM is as relevant as it was during the time of its foundation and the complicated international scenario demands more active role of the NAM movement. The non-aligned movement was founded at the height of the Cold War between the US-led alliance

Yuba Nath Lamsal: Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ completed his first year in office. This is his third term as prime minister. Prachanda often said that he would make his third term memorable and historic as he could not perform well in the past two tenures as Prime Minister because he lacked experience in public office. In an address to the nation on the competition of his first year in power, Prime Minister Prachanda outlined the achievements and activities over the last one year. However, I focus on what he did and where he failed in the conduct of foreign policy and international relations over the last one year. He has listed his visit to India, China, United Arab Emirates, the United States and Italy as his achievements on foreign policy front. Prachanda visited India at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi from May 31 to June 3, 2023. This is a general phenomenon for every prime minister of Nepal to begin foreign visit from India. Prachanda was

Yuba Nath Lamsal: A problem well stated is a problem half solved" goes the adage. In exactly similar manner, Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has clearly stated the problems of the country and duly highlighted the issues he has taken up in the last one year in office. In an address to the nation on the completion of one year in office, Prime Minister Prachanda has made frank confession of not being fully able to live up to the expectations of the people and address all pressing problems facing the country in the last one year of his government. His remarks point to the honesty and sincerity to the nation and the people. The period of one year is a long time to set the tone for speeding up the actions. At the same time, the one year is not long enough to show concrete results of all ills and evils that have engulfed the nation. But the government has set the direction towards which it seeks to move. It is true that the government has not been able to do what it s