Nepal and the United States have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a bilateral consultation mechanism. The agreement was signed by the US Under Secretary for Political Affairs John Bass and Minister for Foreign Affairs Arzu Rana Deuba.

“This agreement will deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, tourism, and infrastructure, strengthening the foundation for meaningful and mutually beneficial collaboration between Nepal and the United States,” Foreign Minister Rana said in a post on X.

Typically, such bilateral consultation mechanisms are led by the foreign secretaries of the respective countries. These meetings take place alternately and discuss the full scope of bilateral relations. Nepal has arrangements similar to those of several other nations.

Following the MoU signing, Foreign Minister Rana and Under Secretary Bass exchanged views on key issues of mutual interest.

According to Nepal’s Embassy in Washington, D.C., the MoU will enable senior officials from Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US State Department to hold periodic consultations, alternating between Kathmandu and Washington, D.C., to discuss the entirety of Nepal-US relations.

Foreign Minister Rana will depart for Doha, leading Nepal’s delegation at the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) Summit, before returning to Kathmandu. Prior to this, she attended the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York.