The 16th meeting of the EU–Nepal Joint Commission concluded in Brussels on Friday. According to the Nepali Embassy in Brussels, the discussions covered development cooperation, trade, climate change, regional connectivity and networking, and multilateral collaboration.
Both sides noted that Nepal–EU ties have continued to progress positively, underscoring the breadth of their development partnership and strong people-to-people relations. The EU also commended the performance of the interim government led by Prime Minister Sushila Karki, particularly its focus on fiscal discipline, good governance, accountability and service delivery.
Nepal highlighted its progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and stressed that cooperation with the EU remains crucial for addressing climate change, advancing disaster risk reduction and promoting investment. Nepal reiterated its commitment to conclude the transitional justice process in line with legal and constitutional provisions.
The EU welcomed Nepal’s transitional strategy for graduating from Least Developed Country status and pledged continued support through its ongoing multi-year assistance programme. The meeting also reviewed progress in development projects across various sectors.
Reaffirming that aviation safety reforms remain a national priority, Nepal expressed its commitment to address issues raised during the EU’s assessment visit in September 2023 and again requested the removal of Nepali airlines from the EU Air Safety List.
The 17th meeting of the Joint Commission will be held in Kathmandu next year on a mutually agreed date. The session was co-chaired by Foreign Secretary Amrit Bahadur Rai and Paola Pampaloni, the EU’s Acting Managing Director for the Department of Asia-Pacific.
