Prime Minister Balendra Shah met UN Secretary-General António Guterres at UN headquarters in New York on Friday, ahead of his address to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly.

Shah, who travelled to New York to attend the Assembly’s high-level week, met Guterres at 6:30pm local time, or 4:15am Friday in Nepal.

Guterres expressed his deep condolences over the loss of life and property in the Bhotekoshi disaster and said the United Nations stood in solidarity with Nepal on climate-related issues. He also praised the country’s young delegation.

Recalling a visit to Nepal as a tourist in 1978, Guterres said he would continue to support Nepal even after leaving office.

Shah thanked Guterres for his goodwill towards Nepal and congratulated him on his tenure as UN secretary-general. He said Nepal had suffered heavy losses in the Bhotekoshi disaster and warned that the risk of glacial lake outburst floods remained high, according to the prime minister's secretariat.

The two discussed the relocation of people living along riverbanks and plans for green reconstruction. They also discussed support for extending Nepal’s graduation timeline from the UN’s least developed country category.