By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Sept. 28: U.S. Ambassador to Nepal Randy W. Berry said on Friday that Nepal had never been asked to join any policy or strategy.
Addressing the Institute for Strategic and Socio-Economic Research (ISSR) here, envoy Berry said, “We have not asked Nepal to be against or for any country. We ask Nepal to be pro-Nepal.”
Nepal should guard its sovereignty fiercely, including by protecting the principles that protect Nepal, by strengthening the freedom, the openness, and the security that have allowed this region to prosper, he said.
He said that the Indo-Pacific Strategy was the name given to U.S. policy. “It describes what we Americans strive to do to protect and advance a free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific Region.”
Some people claim it is a secret military alliance or some kind of member-based organisation meant to trap Nepal, though the fact is, as Foreign Minister Gyawali has told the Parliament and repeated to the press: Nepal has never been asked to “join” anything.”
He further said that there was nothing to join, and no one has “joined” the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy.
“Serving as the United States Ambassador to Nepal is an honor, but it is not just an honor, but for me it is the honor of a lifetime,” the envoy said.

“I have a deep and abiding affection for Nepal. Being the U.S. Ambassador to Nepal is my dream job. Americans are drawn to Nepal’s physical beauty, cultural richness, ethnic diversity, delicious food, majestic mountains, roaring rivers, and the incredible wildlife. But most of all, we are drawn to you, the Nepali people, whose warm hospitality is world-famous.”
Sating that Nepal and the US have been enjoying mutually beneficial relations for 70 years, he said, “Together, we have collectively supported inclusive and effective governance, bolstered human and economic development, reduced vulnerability to disease and disasters, shored up political stability, and increased Nepal’s ability to make positive contributions to regional and global security.”
He termed the progress Nepal made after the completion of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement as amazing. “Within a generation, Nepal has moved through massive political transitions that some countries take centuries to go through!”
“The Indo-Pacific Strategy is simply the name we have given to everything we do in the region, and security is an important part of ensuring the Indo-Pacific Region remains free and open. That is not new. That is how it has been since the end of World War II and since the end of the Cold War,” he said.
He mentioned various programmes that cemented Nepal-America partnership, with Peace Corps progrmme being the major.
“Our partnership is the Millennium Challenge Corporation, or MCC, preparing to work alongside Nepal’s road engineers to improve road maintenance and safety and helping convert Nepal’s hydropower potential into hydropower reality, including by bringing electricity to markets that will benefit Nepal,” he added.
Stating thousands of Nepalis that have learned firsthand about US values and culture through exchange programmes such as Fulbright, Humphrey, the International Visitor Leadership Program, he recalled the rescue mission of the six U.S. Marines in a U.S. military helicopter which flew a dangerous mission to help save Nepalis injured in the 2015 earthquake—and sacrificed their lives to that spirit of partnership.
He said partnership between the two countries was good for both of our countries. “We recognise that America is stronger when Nepal is stronger, that Americans are healthier when Nepalis are healthier, that America’s sovereignty will be stronger if Nepal’s sovereignty is stronger and resolute,” ambassador Berry said.