Outgoing United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) Chief and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General to Nepal, Ian Martin, Sunday advised the government to immediately push ahead the army integration process according to the Comprehensive Peace Accord.
According to nepalnews.com report, in a farewell visit he made to Prime Minister Prachanda at the latter's official residence in Kathmandu, Martin also stressed the need for consensus among the political parties to take the peace process to its logical conclusion.
During the meeting, Martin expressed concern at the ongoing dispute over Nepal Army's recruitment plan and increasing differences among the political parties, warning that the peace process may derail if the past agreements reached between the parties are not implemented and army integration process doesn't move ahead according to the peace accord, Xinhua reported.
In response, Prachanda assured that the government will expedite the army integration process by remaining within the guidelines of the peace accord and the agreement with UNMIN as well as moving ahead with consensus.
Prachanda further informed that a special committee for army integration has also been formed in consensus with all political parties and that the committee will expedite the integration process, Hira Bahadur Thapa, PM's foreign relations advisor, told media persons after the meeting.
Martin, who served as the UN Secretary-General' s Special Representative to Nepal for two years, is leaving for UN headquarters in New York within a few days.