KATHMANDU: US Chargé d’Affaires Megan Bouldin met Chief of Army Staff General Ashok Raj Sigdel on Thursday to discuss bilateral relations and US assistance to Nepal for disaster preparedness and recovery following the devastating floods in August.
During the meeting, Bouldin expressed condolences for those who lost their lives in the disaster and conveyed sympathy to the families of Nepali Army personnel who remain missing.
She also highlighted plans by the United States to provide Nepal with more than $150 million worth of US-made helicopters, drones and riverboats to enhance the country’s disaster-response capabilities. Deliveries of the equipment are scheduled to begin next year.
The equipment is expected to strengthen Nepal’s capacity for search-and-rescue missions, medical evacuations and emergency response operations.
The planned assistance will complement the $38 million worth of M28 Skytruck aircraft donated by the United States last autumn. The aircraft have since been used to support disaster-relief operations in Nepal.
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