The Foreign Ministers of Bay of Bengal Initiatives for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) countries highly appreciated the initiative to make Nepal a "Transit Point" between India and China, Nepali Minister for Foreign Affairs Ramesh Nath Pandey has said.

In a press statement issued here Wednesday upon his return after leading the Nepalese delegation to the Eighth Ministerial Meeting held in Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, Pandey said the foreign ministers of BIMSTEC countries also expressed their views on how to take benefit of the "Transit Point" in the interest of other member countries.

The BIMSTEC has the objective of basically fostering rapid socio-economic progress by promoting cooperation among the member countries in certain priority areas, he said.

Stating that Nepal as a landlocked Less Developed Country has its own socio-economic peculiarities, Pandey noted that "how to maximize the benefits in our national interest was the main concern of the Nepalese delegation in the Meeting."

The Eighth BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting has taken important decisions in the fields of trade regime, energy cooperation, tourism, private sector participation and transport connectivity. These decisions will immensely benefit Nepal, Pandey stated.

"The Ministerial Meeting has been successful in charting out road map for achieving its objectives, and in this regard, it has identified sectors of immediate benefit like health, and long-term benefit like transport connectivity among member countries," he stated.

Established in 1997, the BIMSTEC groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Nepal and Bhutan joined this sub-regional group in February 2004.

Source: Xinhua