Newly appointed information minister, Ramesh Nath Pandey, spoke to media Thursday at the Reporters' Club. His remarks:

Political deadlock: "Major political parties should support the government to restore law and order and hold parliamentary and local elections."

Talks with Maoists: "We can resolve this problem through quiet diplomacy. If we resort to diplomacy via media then we will be in the same situation as last year. We have to show that we can resolve this problem ourselves."

The king's role: "His Majesty is fully committed to work with the political parties and towards multi-party democracy, but that can flourish only if there is stability."

The role of the political parties: "Political parties are the lifeline of a democratic system. the present problems in the country can't be resolved by destroying that role."

On the media: "The government has no intention of restricting press freedom."