Karachi, 13 September 2022 (TDI): First humanitarian assistance flight from Nepal landed at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, today. The assistance is meant as support for Pakistan amidst torrential floods.
The flight was welcomed by the Minister of Social Welfare, Government of Sindh, Sajid Jokhio. Representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) were also present.
Floods in Pakistan
According to satellite pictures from the European Space Agency (ESA), more than one-third of Pakistan is inundated as lethal floodwaters threaten to cause secondary calamities.
After the flood destroyed hundreds of thousands of livestock and blanketed millions of acres of crops, there was a food shortage.
Aid organizations have also warned about an increase in infectious diseases that could leave millions of people vulnerable to illness brought on by what the UN has dubbed a “monsoon on steroids.”
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According to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority, more than 1,100 people have perished in the floods since mid-June, including over 400 children, and millions have been forced to flee their homes (NDMA).
Pakistan has been placed at the forefront of the human-caused climate problem despite already experiencing political and economic unrest.
Nepal-Pakistan Ties
The bilateral relations between Nepal and Pakistan did not exist until initial measures were taken on March 29, 1960. These contacts were then fully established between 1962 and 1963.
Several factors boosted Nepal’s strategic significance to Pakistan. As Indo-US ties strengthened in 1960, Pakistan began to engage more with South Asia’s smaller neighbors.
Since then, both countries have attempted to expand bilateral commerce, strategic, and military collaboration. Nepal recognized Bangladesh’s independence in 1972.
Following Pakistan’s loss in the Bangladesh Liberation War and the secession of East Pakistan as the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. Pakistan suspended links with Nepal soon after, but they were later restored.
