Nepal’s Foreign Policy from a People’s Multiparty Democracy Perspective

Abstract

People’s Multiparty Democracy (PMPD), conceived and implemented after the Popular Movement of 1990—a watershed in Nepal’s political history—is a continuation of and elevation of Nepal’s multifaceted relations with its immediate neighbours and other countries. Given the emergent regional and global power dynamics, the perspective needs revision. PMPD mirrors public aspirations and aims at safeguarding national interests and addressing the changing domestic and global political order. This article assesses the significance of PMPD, introduced 33 years ago, vis-à-vis the present political scenario within and outside the country. This paper examines the challenges of implementing the tenets of the foreign policy of PMPD in light of the changing domestic political milieu. This article employs an interpretive method and draws on information and knowledge from primary and secondary sources, using the realist theory of international relations, with a focus on the Sino-Indian relationship. The findings of the article show that Nepal’s political leadership has often faltered in sustaining bilateral and multilateral relationships. The political alignment of PMPD with the CPN (UML) occasions revision to render it significant in the changed context. This article contributes to understanding how the foreign policy vision of PMPD has shaped Nepal’s foreign policy as a distinct foreign policy doctrine and how it can be elevated for better foreign policy outcomes.