KATHMANDU, 19 March, 2021 (TON): As the present year marks the 60^th year of Nepal-Israel diplomatic relations, the Israel embassy collaborated with the Centre for Diplomatic Dialogue and conducted a seminar on "Six Decades of Nepal-Israel Relations" on Thursday.

This is one of the major events being organized during the year to celebrate 60 years' of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

In the event highlighting the bilateral ties between the two countries and multilateral relations, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali seated as the chief guest.

The existing cooperation and the extent of future collaboration and cooperation between the two countries remained into focus during the event.

Addressing the ceremony, Minister Gyawali said, "I recall with pleasure that Nepal was the first country in the South Asian region to formally recognize the State of Israel by establishing diplomatic relations and hosting the Israeli Embassy in Kathmandu. Our relations have continued to flourish over the years. We have continued to cooperate and collaborate in various areas of mutual interest at the bilateral as well as multilateral levels. I express my confidence that Nepal-Israel relations will continue to strengthen and expand in the days ahead."

Ambassador of Israel to Nepal, Hanan Goder said during the ceremony, "Relations between the countries stand on two legs: one is this excellent bilateral leg and the second one is the multilateral leg, which is less famous, less known and has much lower visibility. The multilateral relations take place mainly in the UN building in New York and in the Human Rights Council in Geneva, and sometimes in other locations. It's imperative that both bilateral and multilateral ties are reflected in the voting pattern of Nepal at the UN as well as other global forums."

However, the embassy reiterated that the seminar provided an opportunity to commend the existing bilateral ties and invited reflections on the possibilities of improving multilateral relations between the two nations.