The government is likely to recommend ambassadors to 13 countries, including India, China, the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom on Friday.

Prime Minister Balendra Shah has called the Cabinet meeting for 3pm to discuss the ambassadorial recommendations, according to officials familiar with the preparations.

The government is expected to recommend ambassadors to key missions, including those in India, China, the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Israel and Austria. Officials said the recommendations could cover 13 countries, rather than all 22 Nepali diplomatic missions that currently do not have ambassadors.

For India, China and the United States, the likely candidates include Nischal Nath Pandey, director of the Centre for South Asian Studies; Kalyan Raj Sharma, an expert on China affairs; and security expert Chiran Jung Thapa. Officials, however, have not confirmed which candidate is being considered for which country.

Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal is scheduled to leave for New York on Sunday to attend the 81st United Nations General Assembly, leaving the government Friday as the final window to make the recommendations before his departure, a senior Foreign Ministry official said.

“Since the process has already been delayed, the government is likely to recommend ambassadors to only 13 countries on Friday rather than filling all 22 vacant missions,” the official said.

The government’s move is being closely watched after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs invited applications through an open call on May 28 for ambassadorial posts in 13 countries. The deadline for applications was June 5.

More than 4,400 applications were received. After duplicate and incomplete applications were removed, around 2,700 applications were shortlisted, before the list was further narrowed to a few hundred candidates.

A number of career diplomats currently serving at the Foreign Ministry are also in consideration for ambassadorial appointments, officials said. But disagreements within the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party have delayed the recommendation process.

The Sushila Karki government had recalled Nepal’s ambassadors to China, Germany, Israel, Malaysia, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan on October 16. The Balendra Shah government subsequently recalled six more ambassadors—from India, Australia, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Denmark and South Africa—on April 7, without immediately recommending their replacements.

The prolonged delay has since increased the number of vacant ambassadorial posts to 22, as the terms of ambassadors in several other missions have expired.

Sixteen Nepali diplomatic missions currently do not have ambassadors: Australia, China, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, the United States and Spain.

The four-year terms of Nepal’s ambassadors to Austria, Egypt, Bahrain, Bangladesh and Myanmar have also ended. As their replacements could not be recommended, they have been instructed not to return until further decisions are made.

The government will eventually have to recommend ambassadors for 22 missions: Australia, China, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, Brazil, Egypt, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Nepal’s permanent mission to the United Nations in Vienna.