.As a landlocked and remittance-dependent country, Nepal has been particularly badly hit by the 39-day war in West Asia, Nepal’s new Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal said. As a South Asian country, Nepal is happy that Pakistan led the effort for talks, which ended inconclusively in Islamabad on Sunday (April 12, 2026), he said, adding that he hopes the ceasefire lasts.
Mr. Khanal, who addressed the Indian Ocean Conference in Mauritius, told The Hindu that he hopes to address ties with India and resolve issues in a structured manner, with bilateral mechanisms meeting before Prime Minister Balendra Shah visits India.
In your speech at the IOC in Mauritius, you said that landlocked countries have the right to the ocean, and this not a favour that countries do to other countries by giving them access. What did you mean?
In a modern era, trades and goods move through ocean. That’s the most efficient way goods and people and ideas move along the ocean lines. So international law, even conventions, all allow and require that land locked countries also have access to the oceans. And this would not be a favour, access is not a privilege given by those that [connect them to the ocean].
How badly has Nepal’s economy been affected by the war in West Asia, and what kind of support are you hoping for from India?
