Hon. Ramesh Lekhak MP met with the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Nepal in November 2015 urging the Government to move forward with ratification of the Biological Weapons Convention.
Hon. Lehak also wrote a letter at this time to the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister urging this step to be taken. Hon. Ramesh Lekhak subsequently informed the PGA Secretariat on 7th December, 2015, subsequent to his participation in PGA's 37th Annual Forum in El Salvador on the Role of Parliamentarians in Promoting Peace and Security from November 30-December 1st, 2015 of a subsequent/follow-up meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Nepal to share with him information on PGA's Annual Forum.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister reiterated once again the positive disposal of the Government of Nepal to move forward with ratification of the Biological and Weapons Convention (BWC), with respect to the aforementioned letter sent to him by Hon. Ramesh Lekhak MP and also in connection with their prior meeting on the same subject matter. The Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister also indicated to Hon. Ramesh Lekhak that the matter had now and since been discussed with relevant governmental officials and he had concluded it was in the interests of Nepal to ratify the BWC and that he had therefore instructed relevant officers to move forward with the process for the ratification of treaty and that Hon. Ramesh Lekhak, MP should anticipate some progress in the near future regarding this. A Nepalese media report of January 2nd, 2016 indicated that the Cabinet of the Government of Nepal has transmitted the BWC to parliament for approval.
Nepal is the only country in Asia that has not yet ratified the BWC.
Hon. Ramesh Lekhak MP’s participation in PGA’s 37th Annual Forum on the Role of Parliamentarians in Promoting Peace and Security in El Salvador from 30th November-1st December, 2015 was made possible by the kind support of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia.