King Gyanendra said Friday Nepal was sending troops abroad for peace-keeping operations despite their need at home. “The state of law and order in the country is in a complex situation and even through the country is in need of soldiers it is sending Royal Nepalese Army personnel to Sierra Leone bound as it is in its commitment to world peace,” the King said while addressing the third batch of the Shree Barda Battalion Peace-Keeping Force at Panchkhal.
“In line with Nepal’s commitment to the UN Charter, the Royal Nepalese Army has been, since many years, playing an important role in efforts at maintaining peace in the world,” the King said. The King is the supreme commander-in-chief of the Royal Nepal Army. Crown Prince Paras was also present on the occasion.
The third contingent of the Shree Bahadur Battalion consisting of 800 army personnel of various ranks and led by Lt.Col. Dipak Prasad Bharati is replacing another contingent soon. Nepal has another smaller peace-keeping contingent in East Timor.