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US President Donald Trump and his advisers have defended sweeping tariffs on imports and vowed to stay the course, despite market turmoil and calls to avoid a trade war, BBC reported.

In a series of television interviews, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent played down recent stock market falls and Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, insisted reciprocal tariffs would be implemented as planned.

Bessent said there was "no reason" to expect a recession as a result of the turmoil. "This is an adjustment process," he said.

Meanwhile, another top adviser, Kevin Hassett, said more than 50 countries have contacted Trump to try to negotiate a deal, according to BBC.

Minister for Health and Population Pradeep Paudel arrived in New York to take part in the 58th session of the Commission on Population and Development in the UN Headquarters in New York, USA.

Nepal's Chief of the UN Mission in New York, Lok Bahadur Thapa, and other diplomats from the Mission welcomed Minister Paudel on his arrival in New York.

Minister Paudel is attending the high-level meeting of the Commission on Population and Development (DPD) to take place on Monday and Tuesday.

According to the UN, the event is being held in New York from April 7 to 11 with focus on 'Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages," aligning with Sustainable Development Goal 3.

The recent meeting between Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC summit in Thailand has sparked cautious optimism about the trajectory of bilateral relations. The one-on-one discussion, described by observers as potentially ice-breaking, comes against the backdrop of an unusually prolonged delay in arranging an official visit by Oli to New Delhi—a standard diplomatic protocol that typically follows a change of government in Nepal.

Ten months into Oli’s third term, the absence of an official invitation from India has fueled speculation about underlying tensions between the two neighbors. Diplomatic sources suggest several factors may be contributing to the hesitation, including Nepal’s deepening engagement with China through initiatives like the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) framework agreement, which has reportedly caused discomfort in New Delhi.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Arzu Rana Deuba had previously indicated that preparations were underway for reciprocal visits by both prime ministers, but her recent silence on the matter suggests recalibrated expectations. Prime Minister Oli himself offered an unusually muted explanation upon returning from Thailand, stating simply that his India visit wasn’t happening due to his busy schedule and might occur “if time permits.” This contrasts with his more enthusiastic pronouncements about bilateral relations during previous terms.

Historical context suggests such delays aren’t unprecedented—former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba waited nine months after taking office in 2021 before visiting India. However, the current situation appears more complex, with Indian officials privately emphasizing their desire for any high-level visit to yield substantive outcomes, possibly including the inauguration of joint infrastructure projects. “There’s no major obstacle,” one senior Indian official noted, “but we want the visit to demonstrate tangible progress in the relationship.”

The delay in the prime minister’s visit to India does not mean that there is a lack of communication between the two governments. Oli and Modi first met on the sidelines of the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations in September last year. Since then, Foreign Minister Deuba has also held meetings with Indian Prime Minister Modi and her Indian counterpart S Jaishankar.

Officials say though there hasn’t been a prime ministerial-level exchange between Nepal and India,  meetings of all bilateral mechanisms have been taking place to address mutual concerns and issues. There have also been ministerial level visit exchanges and more are lined up in the imminent future. 

A senior official at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers said, “The delay in the prime minister’s India visit doesn’t mean that the ties between Nepal and India have stalled, because all bilateral engagements are sailing in a smooth manner.”

Following the Thailand meeting between Oli and Modi, India’s Ministry of External Affairs released a carefully worded statement emphasizing continued cooperation in connectivity, energy and people-to-people ties, while conspicuously avoiding mention of more sensitive issues. The statement reaffirmed Nepal’s importance under India’s ‘Neighborhood First’ policy, suggesting an effort to project normalcy despite the evident diplomatic awkwardness.

The aborted plan for Modi to attend Nepal’s Sagarmatha Sambaad dialogue in May—ostensibly due to scheduling conflicts with a European trip—highlighted some of the coordination challenges for high-level exchanges. Nepali officials acknowledge the late invitation may have been a logistical misstep, but some analysts see it as emblematic of broader communication gaps.

Iran has rejected the prospect of direct negotiations with the United States, calling the notion “meaningless” in light of persistent military threats and mixed signals from Washington.

Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian foreign minister, stated on Sunday, April 6, that Tehran was still open to diplomacy but would only entertain indirect discussions. He made these comments after US President Donald Trump reiterated his demand for in-person talks on Iran's nuclear program, threatening to strike Iran if the talks fall through, Firstpost reported.

Araghchi stated in a statement released by Iran's foreign ministry that "direct negotiations would be meaningless with a party that persistently threatens to resort to force in violation of the UN Charter and that expresses contradictory positions from its various officials."