KATHMANDU: Minister for Foreign Affairs Prakash Sharan Mahat has insisted the need of transport connectivity among the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) member states.

During his meeting today with foreign secretaries of BIMSTEC member states who are presently in the Capital in the course of participating in the ongoing meeting of BIMSTEC officials, the Foreign Minister said he hoped that linking the BIMSTEC member states by the transport would help the region develop further and strengthen mutual and people-to-people relations.

The meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The BIMSTEC is an important forum for its member states as it helps them iin tourism promotion and economic development, the Minister added.

He went on to say that the common transport connectivity would also help the nations fight against terrorism.

As Nepal is a landlocked country, it believes that transport connectivity by sea (if possible) would benefit the country to a maximum degree, he opined.

He informed the BIMSTEC foreign secretaries that Nepal would possibly hold the BIMSTEC ministerial-level meeting in coming June and would likely hold the BIMSTEC Summit soon.

Nepal presently assumes the chair of the regional body.