Minister N.P. Saud participated in a talk program hosted by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington, D.C. During the program, titled ‘Nepal’s Foreign Policy Outlook,’ Minister Saud spoke about Nepal’s foreign policy orientation, emphasizing its commitment to an independent foreign policy based on the Charter of the United Nations, non-alignment, and principles of Panchasheel.

During his address, Minister Saud stated, "Our conduct of external relations is based on a balanced and independent outlook, which is rooted in the historical fact that we were among the few countries that always remained independent, free from any sort of colonial rule."

The Minister further highlighted Nepal’s political transformation of historic proportions stating, “We ended armed conflict in the country by establishing a home-grown peace process tailored to our requirements.”

USIP’s Asia Center Vice President Andrew Wilder received the Minister and Ms. Tamanna Salikuddin chaired the talk program.

In the afternoon, the Minister held a meeting with USAID Administrator Samantha Power. The two sides discussed ongoing USAID projects in Nepal and explored future opportunities for development cooperation, particularly with a focus on infrastructure development, possibility of developinga fertilizer plant and food security.

Likewise, the Minister also held a meeting with U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC)’s CEO Scott Nathanwhere he highlighted the measures taken by the Government of Nepal to enhance private investment in various sectors of economyand urged DFC to encourage American private sector to invest more in Nepal.

CEO Nathan said thatDFC wants more projects in Nepal, including in infrastructure development, energy, and agro-business, apart from its current involvement with SMEs. He noted that DFC is not only involved in financing, but also helps to create the eco-system for private sector development.

During these meetings, the Minister was accompanied by AmbassadorSridhar Khatri and other senior officials from the Ministry and the Embassy.