U.S. Aid and Foreign Policy towards Nepal during the Cold War: An Assessment

Abstract

Foreign aid is basically an instrument of foreign policy. The United States was the first country to provide aid to Nepal in the height of the Cold War. As in the case of most of the recipients of U.S. aid, the United States employed aid to serve its fundamental foreign policy objectives. The paper examines the main foreign policy motivations of the United States in Nepal and evaluates how successful aid was in achieving those objectives. The paper concludes that although the Cold War considerations for aid are changed, the United States should continue to offer aid in sectors that may benefit the poorer section of society as the success or failure of Nepal’s democracy rests upon how fast the government manages to improve their economic conditions.