Foreign Minister Ramesh Nath Pandey
Foreign Minister Ramesh Nath Pandey
(File Photo)
Foreign Minister Ramesh Nath Pandey said that terrorism shouldn’t be given any room to pose a threat to the socio-economic development process.
Speaking at a discussion programme on Thursday to mark the 21st Charter Day of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), organized by Bangladeshi Embassy in Kathmandu, Pandey said, “SAARC is moving slowly but in the right direction.”
The minister further said that in the age of globalisation, SAARC, which composes of big and powerful and small and vulnerable countries, should develop links.
Former Secretary General of SAARC, Yadav Kant Silwal, said implementation of South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) on the scheduled time will be a big achievement for SAARC.
Ambassador of Bangladesh, Humayun Kabir, also said that SAFTA implementation from January 2006 will be a big leap in strengthening regional cooperation in South Asia.
Incepted in 1985 with a noble objective to collectively raise the voice of South Asian countries in the international arena, the SAARC has made a lot of achievements.
It has organized 13 Summits for the collective welfare of millions of people that house the region. But, at the same time, the pace of the SAARC process has been tardy.
Provision in the SAARC Charter to make all decisions in an unanimous basis, which though is not bad in itself, has become one of the stumbling blocks for the regional process.
Meanwhile, the SAARC Secretariat also organized a reception in the capital to mark the 21st anniversary of the regional body on Thursday.
Members of cabinet, high-ranking government officials, chiefs of diplomatic missions, industrialists, entrepreneurs, media men and people from various walks of life attended the function.