By TON Nepal

Currently, America is forcing Nepal to sign Washington’s State Partnership Program (SPP) between the Nepal Army and the United States National Guard which has triggered a new debate and left the political and intellectual circles divided. It may also fall Nepal into a geopolitical morass amid growing worldwide and regional tensions in South Asia.

The issue has been raised just ahead of the visits of the incumbent Prime Minister and Chief of Army Staff General to the United States. The Nepalese Gen is scheduled to visit the US at the invitation of the Pentagon from June 27 to July 1 while Prime Minister is visiting Washington in mid-July, of which an official declaration is yet to be made.

Nepal’s participation in the State Partnership Program (SPP) got a renewed impulse last week during the visit of the Commanding General of the US Army Pacific to Nepal. During his meetings with the Prime Minister and Nepalese Gen, the Commanding General of the US Army Pacific called the Nepalese side for signing the SPP on the military-to-military exchange between the two armies

The issue has already got grasped on the heels of Nepal’s decision to ratify the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) compact from Parliament despite objections from a certain section of society.

Those opposing the MCC argue that the grant is part of the Washington-led Indo-Pacific Strategy, hence entails security threats, something the US has denied calling it pure development assistance. Now some are questioning if signing the SPP would make Nepal part of a military alliance.

The US first came up with the concept of the SPP in 1993 as a humanitarian and disaster response training program. When Nepal first requested the US government to become part of the SPP in 2015. Negotiations, however, stalled with the American side due to the internal political situation of Nepal as the country was moving under a border blockade, numerous government changes, and an election cycle.

After the parliamentary elections in 2017 and the then government led by the UML chair had formed a team of senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, and Nepal Army to study the draft of the SPP and make recommendations. The process, however, was stalled again due to the Covid pandemic and a halt in official visits between Nepal and the United States kept on insisting that Nepal sign the SPP.

The then defense minister was invited to Washington as well. But his travel plans were suspended after he resigned as defense minister following his defeat in the party’s elections. During their meetings with the Commanding General of the US Army Pacific, neither the Nepalese prime minister nor the army chief, however, committed anything except saying they will positively consider the matter.

The US under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights visited Kathmandu on May 20-22. Her visit came following Beijing’s objection to Kathmandu’s decision to ratify the $500 million grant under Washington’s Millennium Challenge Corporation. Beijing, which opposed MCC ratification, sees the US grant as part of the Indo-Pacific Strategy which it believes is aimed at countering China and its Belt and Road Initiative. It all shows the threat of a new cold war looming in the Himalayas.

The American push for Nepal to sign Washington’s State Partnership Program between the Nepal Army and the United States National Guard has triggered a new debate and left the political and intellectual divided on whether SPP should be a sign or not.

The issue got traction pretty quickly as it came to the public domain hot on the heels of Nepal’s decision to ratify the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) compact from Parliament despite objections from a certain section of society.

After barely four months since the MCC ratification. General and provincial elections are just around the corner. If the prime minister signs the SPP, it will be a disaster. However, it looks like the government is willing to sign the SPP with the US. It seems that the incumbent government is tilting toward the US, ignoring its significant immediate neighbor China.

Now, it is clear that in the guise of helping, with natural and other disasters, ranging from storms to tremors, overflows, and fires, the United States seeks to make an alliance against its economic rival China in the Indo-specific region.