Kathmandu, Sep 2: Nepal has launched a diplomatic push seeking climate-related compensation from major greenhouse gas emitters, including India, the US and China, arguing that the Himalayan nation contributes “virtually negligible” emissions but bears a disproportionate share of the consequences of climate change.
Nepal Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said the country was shifting its approach from seeking conventional “aid” to demanding “justice and compensation” following devastating flash floods and other climate-linked disasters.
“We are paying the ultimate price for a global crisis we did not create. The rapid melting of glaciers and these catastrophic mountain tsunamis are direct consequences of global climate change,” Khanal said in an interview with Kantipur TV, excerpts of which were published by The Kathmandu Post.
“This is not a matter of charity; it is a matter of legal and moral liability,” he said, adding that Nepal would raise the issue at international forums “with absolute firmness and clarity”.
Khanal identified China, the US and India as the world’s three largest greenhouse gas emitters and said they had a “historical responsibility to compensate vulnerable nations like Nepal”.
“This is a matter of civilisational survival,” he said, warning that the disappearance of Himalayan glaciers could threaten the water security of more than two billion people dependent on rivers such as the Ganges and Trishuli.
“We are advocating not just for Nepal, but for the survival of South Asian civilisation,” Khanal said.
Nepal has also formally approached the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, seeking urgent financial assistance following the Bhotekoshi River basin flash flood.
In a letter jointly signed by Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle and Forests and Agriculture Minister Geeta Chaudhary, the government said the disaster had caused extensive economic and non-economic losses beyond Nepal’s immediate response capacity.
While Nepal seeks longer-term climate compensation, survivors of the August 26 flash floods have been relying on immediate humanitarian assistance, including support from neighbouring India.
In Nuwakot, the Nepal-Bharat Maitri Bhawan, which houses an Ayurveda and Alternative Hospital rebuilt with financial assistance from the Embassy of India after the 2015 earthquake, has become a refuge for displaced residents.
Hospital chief Dr Narendra Prasad Giri said more than 100 displaced people were staying at the facility each night, while medical teams were also being sent to nearby shelters.
“This building is a core support for the people. Many devastated people who were rescued from there, we brought them here and treated, and their health is now stable,” Giri said.
Flood survivors also expressed gratitude for the medical care and assistance provided at the facility. One survivor, who was injured after being swept away by floodwaters while trying to save his goats, recalled how hospital staff reassured him.
“Don’t cry, we will save you, treat your wounds, apply medicine, and make you fine right here,” the survivor said.
Expressing gratitude for India’s support, he added, “Indian government is like our neighboring nation, a friend. The Indian government has given us a lot of support.”
The contrasting developments underscore Nepal’s dual challenge — seeking international accountability and financial support for mounting climate-related losses while relying on immediate humanitarian assistance from neighbouring countries during disasters.
