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