KATHMANDU: US Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah B. Rogers arrived in Kathmandu on last evening from New Delhi, completing the India segment of her South and Central Asia tour.
Rogers is the highest-ranking US diplomat to visit Nepal since the Balendra Shah-led government assumed office and the third senior American official to travel to the country since the administration was formed on March 27.
According to the US State Department, Rogers is undertaking a regional tour of India, Nepal, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan from May 27 to June 10. This marks her first visit to Kathmandu since taking office last year.
Since the Shah government came to power in March, Washington has dispatched several high-level officials to Nepal. On April 20, Assistant Secretary of State Paul Kapur, who oversees South and Central Asian affairs, visited Kathmandu.
Ten days after his departure, Sergio Gor, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for South and Central Asia, arrived in Nepal and held meetings with Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal, Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle, and other officials. Both Kapur and Gor also met Rastriya Swatantra Party President Rabi Lamichhane.
However, Prime Minister Balendra Shah did not hold meetings with either US representative.
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