Kathmandu: Nepal has said climate change was behind the massive glacier collapse, flash floods and landslides that recently hit the country, and argued that assistance should be treated as climate compensation rather than charity.
Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal said the disaster must not be viewed as routine humanitarian relief. Instead, he described it as a matter of justice and compensation for losses caused by global warming.
Nepal’s Finance Ministry has submitted a formal request to the international “Loss and Damage Fund” under the global community’s framework, seeking support linked to climate impacts.
Khanal said major carbon-emitting industrialised countries such as India, China and the United States carry moral and legal responsibility and should provide compensation.
Officials said the death toll in Nepal’s floods has risen to 1,003. Around 4,000 people remain missing, including 583 foreign nationals and several security personnel, while about 12,000 have been rescued. In Tibet under Chinese control, 16 deaths and 550 missing have been reported.
